


Behind Our Masks

by LunaTheDarkAngel



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Costume Maker!Hide, How Do I Tag, M/M, Mainly cute stuff because that makes me happy, Some plot somewhere, Some random OC villains, Superhero!Touka, Vigilante!Kaneki, bit of Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-24
Updated: 2020-10-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:27:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 33,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24362062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LunaTheDarkAngel/pseuds/LunaTheDarkAngel
Summary: Heroes and vigilantes have an image, a persona that they’ve built over their time of fighting evil…and Kaneki’s about to throw his entire reputation out because of a cute costume maker.
Relationships: Kaneki Ken | Sasaki Haise & Kirishima Touka, Kaneki Ken | Sasaki Haise/Nagachika Hideyoshi, Kirishima Touka & Nagachika Hideyoshi
Comments: 33
Kudos: 118





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!
> 
> So, this is my first published story on Ao3 and those who tag things with as much detail as they do are awesome and I'm gonna try to do that.
> 
> This was going to be a Kaneki is a vigilante and Hide is a superhero and their hijinks since they don't know each other's identities. But then I was watching Incredibles and Edna is amazing and I was like, "What is Hide was a superhero costume maker?" And that's why the story is now what it is.

There were all different kinds of villains in this city from violent to greedy to the simply bored. And there were all kinds of people who dealt with them: the police, the superheroes, and the vigilantes like him. Though even by vigilante standards, he wasn’t the most reputable.

But he at least made sure the job was done.

Centipede’s kagune broke the kidnapper’s arm before he was able to fire his gun into his hostage. The man screamed and the woman he was holding ran as fast as she could to a nearby officer. He used his kagune to repel up a nearby building and headed to the next incident.

It seemed to be near the center of the city where a building was on fire. Centipede crouched on top of a roof, surveying the area. The fire department were trying to put out the fire and people were being brought to ambulances. News crews were lining the street, covering everything that was happening.

Centipede focused on the burning building. Was there anyone else inside?

That question was answered when someone came crashing through a window on the top floor. The female hero was holding several people in her arms as she used her wings to lower herself gently to the ground.

“Look, everyone! It’s the blood red beauty, Bloodwing!” one of the news reporters shouted. Dozens of people applauded as Bloodwing handed off everyone in her arms.

“I checked the rest of the building. No one’s left. I’m pretty sure this is Firebug’s work so I’ll start the pursuit.”

The elderly woman Bloodwing saved grabbed the hero’s hand. “Thank you, Bloodwing!”

Bloodwing gave her a smile before she flew off. She didn’t get far before she was knocked out of the sky with a giant fireball. The crowd’s terrified screams were muted in his ears as Centipede leapt through the air and caught Bloodwing before crashing onto a lower roof apartment.

Bloodwing hopped out of his arms, doing a quick roll to get the flames out. She looked at her suit; it didn’t have any holes in it but was starting to fray. She checked her wings and when she saw that all her feathers were still there, she spat on the ground.

“That bitch,” Bloodwing hissed.

“You okay?”

“I will be when I rip her head off,” Bloodwing told him, looking around for Firebug.

A cold laugh filled the air and the two went on guard. A woman sauntered up to them, hands covered in fire.

“Bloodwing, language,” Firebug cackled.

“Watch my back,” Bloodwing whispered before she shot forward. Centipede took to the left so he could get around Firebug’s back. Firebug grinned before she surrounded herself in a circle of flame. She shot several fireballs at Bloodwing who dodged them then closed in with her bladed fan. Centipede made it around her back and sent his kagune forward to pierce her torso.

“Think you two are the only ones who know how to work together?”

A chain wrapped around Centipede’s throat, strangling him. He was lifted off the ground and smacked into Bloodwing. Before they could get to their feet, a sword covered in fire was launched at Bloodwing. Centipede pushed her out of the way, screaming when the blade pierced through his skin and seared his flesh.

“Centipede!” Bloodwing got the chain off his neck, looking at his wound. “You okay?”

The wound hurt but it wasn’t the worst one he had ever gotten. Looking up, Centipede saw two robots standing by Firebug’s side.

“Where do bad guys get this shit?” Bloodwing muttered. Firebug just smirked before she sent the two robots forward. Bloodwing grabbed Centipede and took off to the sky, blocking one of the robot’s swords with her fan before kicking it back onto the roof.

Let go…” Centipede growled, ready to get back into the fight.

Bloodwing focused on dodging all of Firebug’s fireballs. “Just because you don’t give a shit if you die, doesn’t mean I don’t.”

“I have a plan,” he told her.

Bloodwing obviously looked skeptical but she took a risk and let go. Centipede fell, used one of his kagune to grab the end of the roof and two others to grab the legs of the robots. He pulled them down and sent them crashing into the side of the building. Before they could move, he wrapped his kagune around them and squeezed as hard as he could, grinning when they creaked before breaking apart.

Letting go of the broken pieces, Centipede launched himself back up to the roof to help Bloodwing. It seemed he was too late as Bloodwing threw her fan through the flame Firebug just launched. It pierced through the fireball and landed in Firebug’s chest. She fell to the ground, tried to pull out the fan but Bloodwing closed in and held her other fan to Firebug’s neck.

Firebug whimpered before she held up her hands. Bloodwing glared at her and Centipede took a step forward, ready to end it now.

Bloodwing reached forward and removed Firebug’s gloves; she dropped them on the ground and crushed them under her boot, the circuitry inside popping out. She pulled out the blade in Firebug’s chest and put both of them away.

She grabbed Firebug by the arm and growled, “If you even think about breaking out, next time you’re _his_ problem.” Bloodwing looked over at Centipede and Firebug’s fear-filled eyes followed. Centipede changed his kagune into a claw, making the message clear.

Firebug shut her eyes and nodded. Bloodwing grabbed her around the waist before she flew down to drop her off to the police. Centipede let out an exhausted sigh, sitting on the roof. He touched the wound on his stomach; thankfully, the fire had made sure the wound was cauterized as soon as it happened but he still had a giant gash in his suit.

Bloodwing came back up, walking towards him. “You good?” He nodded but he was pretty sure that she didn’t believe him. “Looks like your suit needs a stitch job.”

That sounded simple except… “Tsukiyama’s out of town. This was my last spare suit.”

Centipede massaged his temples, not sure what he was going to do. He knew he could wear this suit again but it was a pain. And he couldn’t wear street clothes; they didn’t offer him the same kind of protection and he was already recovering from the wound he got last week.

Bloodwing stayed silent before she let out a sigh. “I’ll take you to my guy.” Centipede looked at her and she waved her hand, dismissively. “Payment for saving my ass. Meet me at Anteiku at one.”

Centipede wanted to argue, say he didn’t want to be a bother but he knew that she didn’t want to hear it so he just smiled in gratitude. “Thanks, Bloodwing.” “Just don’t stand me up, dumbass.”

Bloodwing then flapped her wings and took off into the sky. Centipede watched her fly off before he hopped off the roof and headed to his apartment. He made sure to stick to the back alleys, keeping an ear out for any passing thugs he might have to take out. Thankfully, there was no one and he was able to sneak into his bedroom window without incident. He tossed his mask onto the floor and collapsed onto his bed. He should take a shower, get some food, but he was so tired. He touched the wound once more. It wasn’t that bad; it would be a scar by morning. He just needed to sleep.

…

The sun shining through his windows woke him up and Kaneki just groaned, putting his pillow over his head. “Go away.” But it didn’t and Kaneki succumbed to the fact that he was now awake.

Removing the pillow, he crawled out of bed and dragged himself to the bathroom. He started the water for a shower, finally stripping himself of his torn suit. Kaneki looked in the mirror, ignoring his exhausted and pale face, and focused on his fresh wound. Once he got some food in him, it would probably be gone. He looked over the faded scars on his body, glancing over at his suit on the ground covered in blood.

“The sooner I get a new suit, the sooner I get to go back on patrol,” he muttered to himself, stepping into the shower.

He let out a sign of relief when the hot water hit his tired muscles. Sitting in the tub and curling himself up, he allowed himself to relax for a minute. Just take in the feeling of water on his skin. The sound of it hitting the bathtub.

Just rest…

…for a moment.

…

…

…

Kaneki startled awake, trying to look through his wet bangs and spitting out the water that went into his mouth. What was happening? How long was he out? What time was it?

He reached forward and turned off the water before grabbing a nearby towel. He dried his head, walking back to his bedroom to get either of his cellphones. He checked the time and just groaned.

12:47

If he didn’t hurry, he wouldn’t make it by 1 and Touka would kill him.

Drying himself off as quickly as possible, Kaneki grabbed anything that looked and smelled clean. He got dressed before getting his black wig. He went to the mirror, putting on his wig, and doing his best to stuff his white hair inside. He checked his reflection and when he was sure he looked as normal as he could, he stuffed his phones in his pockets and left his apartment.

Kaneki jogged as quickly as he could, or as quickly as he could pretend without looking suspicious. Anteiku was about a ten-minute walk from his apartment so hopefully he’d make it in time. Swerving through the commuting pedestrian and waiting for stoplights took a few minutes away from him so when he reached Anteiku, it was 1:04.

Kaneki leaned against the wall of the building, feeling his stomach rebelling against him. Maybe he could ask Touka to bring him a doughnut or something before they left. He couldn’t go in there, though. He only recently started talking with everyone again. And while it was the shining point in his life, it was still haunted by his own humiliation and self-doubt.

The door opened and Touka came out, glaring at him for (he assumed) being late. She was holding two thermoses of coffee and a paper bag that probably had a breakfast sandwich inside judging from the delicious smell. Her wings were hidden away and Kaneki doubted anyone would believe that the polite Bloodwing who did charity work at the hospitals was the girl who looked ready to strangle him. She gave him a once over before handing him one of the thermoses and the paper bag; Kaneki took both gratefully.

“Thank you,” he said, digging into the breakfast sandwich as quickly as possible.

“One of us has to give a shit about you,” Touka told him, walking down the street. “Let’s go.”

Kaneki followed her, curious about the person who Touka trusted enough to keep going back to. “Is he far?”

“Shop’s a few blocks down. Believe me when I say you can’t miss it.” That shouldn’t have sounded as ominous as it did.

He took a drink of the coffee, reveling in the caffeine intake. “How long have you been going to him?”

“A few months. Saved him from some falling debris and he made me a new suit as a thanks,” Touka explained. Kaneki thought she had changed her suit recently but he hadn’t commented on it. “Was going to say no but shitty Nishiki gave him a thumbs up.”

“Nishiki did?” That was even more surprising than Touka.

“Yeah but he warned me, like I am you, that’s he’s annoying.” She stopped. “We’re here.”

Kaneki looked at the store in front of them and almost dropped his thermos. It was a small boutique that was painted yellow. In the window were several mannequins in different outfits. Above the door written on a light blue sign in white cursive letters were the words “Rabbits and Ribbons”.

Kaneki just stared at the building before looking at Touka. “…It’s very…” He tried to think of the nicest but still most honest word. “…bright…”

“Yeah, it looks like Easter threw up on it,” Touka said. She…wasn’t wrong.

The two walked in, the bell above the door signaling their entrance. There was another pair in the store, a mother and her young daughter, who was pulling at her mother’s hand in excitement.

“It’s gonna be pretty! Right, Mama?!”

“I’m sure it will be but please settle down.”

Touka stood behind the two while Kaneki looked around the store. The walls were lined with different clothing items, mostly for the upcoming summer weather. It was strange. Tsukiyama didn’t hide that he was a designer for heroes. His entire mansion was dedicated to that practice and protecting himself from anyone who would use that against him. This just looked like a store for anyone to shop at.

“Here it is~!”

Kaneki turned to the back of the store where a man showed up, holding a small green sundress. He was blonde with warm brown eyes. He also had a smile so big Kaneki thought his face would break.

The little girl let out a happy squeal as she took the dress from him and began twirling around.

“Pretty! Pretty! Thank you, Mr. Hide!”

The man (Hide, apparently) gave a small bow. “Always happy to serve a lovely lady.”

“Thank you, Hide,” the mother said, paying him for the dress.

“Of course. Enjoy and make sure to take pictures!” he shouted as the little girl and her mother headed out. Once they were gone, Hide turned to Touka. “Hey, Touka. I was wondering when you’d be here,” he said, pulling out a large paper bag from under the counter. “Saw you on the news last night. Awesome job."

Touka scoffed, obviously not wanting to remember last night. “Not really. Got my ass set on fire.”

Hide waved that off. “You saved a building full of people. I call that a success.” He looked at the thermos she was carrying, obviously delighted. “And you brought me coffee? You’re the best~!”

She handed him the thermos. “I know.”

Hide traded her the bag for the coffee. “Thank you~!” It was then he noticed Kaneki still standing close to the door. Hide just stared at him, analyzing him, and Kaneki felt exposed for some reason. After a few seconds, he smiled and turned to Touka. “He’s the one who helped you last night, right?”

Kaneki’s eyes went wide and Touka nodded. “Yeah, his usual guy isn’t in town so I said I’d introduce you.”

“Awesome!” Rounding the counter, Hide strolled up to Kaneki. “Nice to meet you. I’m Hide.” He held out his hand but Kaneki didn’t take it.

“How…?” Touka wouldn’t have told him who he was. She wouldn’t do that to him so how did he know?

“Oh, sorry. Didn’t mean to freak you out.” Hide retracted his hand, using it to scratch the back of his head. “I have premonition. It’s not that good but I saw that you and Touka would be coming in today.”

“But how did you know that it was me last night?” Kaneki asked, not hiding his concern.

The question seemed to amuse Hide more than anything. “Mainly, Touka’s dislike of people.”

“Fuck off, Nagachika.”

Hide gave her a wave with his fingers. “Premonition usually sucks so I have to make up for it with context clues. Since our lovely Touka here only trusts certain people, she wouldn’t bring just anyone into my shop.” He gave Kaneki a once over. “I saw the fight with Firebug on TV. Your suit was ripped so her bringing you in wasn’t that surprising.”

Kaneki was still stunned at how easy Hide had managed to figure him out. He looked over at Touka who shrugged. “Yeah, for a dumbass, he’s pretty smart.”

“Flatterer,” Hide chuckled before giving Kaneki a light punch in the shoulder. “Don’t worry. I know how to keep a secret. Part of the job.”

Kaneki didn’t want to accept that. The fact that it was so easy for this man to know who he was posed a problem. But still, if Touka and Nishiki trusted him then…he couldn’t be that bad.

He bit the proverbial bullet. “Alright.”

Hide responded with the brightest smile Kaneki had ever seen. “Awesome! Just wait, once you see my work, you’ll be begging to come back,” Hide told him as he strolled over to his counter.

“Well, you two have fun. I got places to be,” Touka told them as she tossed her bag over her shoulder and started walking out. She paused in front of Kaneki. “Don’t fuck this up.” He wasn’t sure what that meant but it didn’t seem she wanted to clarify as she walked out. “Later, Nagachika!”

“See you next time!” Hide took a sip of his coffee, looking over at Kaneki. “So, like I was saying, I’m Hide. Nice to meet you.”

Kaneki walked up to the counter. “You can call me Centipede.”

Hide shook his head. “One of those. Well, then, Mr. Centipede…” Hide pulled out a sketchbook and mechanical pencil, excitement evident on his face. “What are we going for?”

Kaneki handed Hide a few photographs he had taken from Tsukiyama. He wasn’t going to ask when Tsukiyama had taken so many pictures of him on patrol. Hide took the photos, glanced at each of them, then sighed in disappointment.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Hide told him, writing something down in his book. “It’s just so…” He twirled his hands around, trying to find the right word. “…drab.”

Kaneki couldn’t help but smirk. “Funny. I had a similar reaction when I saw your store.”

Hide made an affronted sound, hand going to his chest. “The disrespect.” It was clear he was joking when he laughed. “Though that’s a lot nicer than what Touka’s told me about it.” Hide finished writing in his notebook before giving Kaneki a thumbs up. “Looks simple enough. I don’t have any other clients right now so it should be ready by tomorrow afternoon.”

Kaneki frowned. He knew that was fast but he still wanted to be back on patrol tonight. Maybe he’d just go in his street clothes.

“Don’t you do it.” Kaneki blinked, wondering if he had been talking out loud. Hide frowned, leaning forward and poking Kaneki in the nose with the eraser of his pencil. “I’ve worked with enough heroes to know that look. The “I’m-going-to-be-stupid-and-put-myself-in-danger-because-I-don’t-want-to-wait-for-my-suit” look!”

Kaneki coughed, scratching his chin. “I don’t know what you mean.”

Hide obviously wasn’t convinced as he sat back down. “I don’t know how sturdy you are but if you need the extra protection of a good suit, then going without it is stupid and you know it.”

Kaneki stayed silent. It wasn’t that dangerous. He had a decent healing ability and could take a good number of hits before needing to use it. He could handle himself.

“What do you do for fun?”

He blinked, looking up at Hide.

“What?”

“Fun?” Hide asked, lips quirked upwards into a smirk. “You know, something you like to do?”

“…I read.”

“Not surprising. Seem like the bookish type. And when was the last time you read something for fun?”

Kaneki opened his mouth then shut it. Actually…it had been forever since he last sat down to read a book. Because of the recent crime wave, he went out on patrol most nights and worked during the day. If he wasn’t working, he was usually unconscious so he could recuperate. There had been rare times when he had decided not to go out, pulled out a book, but he’d see something and just felt the need to jump in and help.

“…It’s been a while,” he murmured, struck by the realization.

“I figured. Do you have anywhere else to be right now?” Kaneki shook his head and Hide smiled, hopping off his stool and heading to the back room. He beckoned Kaneki forward with his finger. “Follow me.”

Kaneki thought on the repercussions of simply leaving but knew there was no way to do that without being completely rude. He followed Hide through the back door and wasn’t sure if he should be surprised by the fact that the back room looked as mundane as the front of the store. Hide pointed over to a swivel chair in front of a desk and Kaneki took a seat, waiting patiently as Hide messed around on a tablet.

“Favorite author?” Hide asked.

“Um…Sen Takatsuki.”

Hide started typing. “What do they write about?”

“Mainly psychological horrors. They’re very interesting.”

“More of a music man.” Hide finished whatever he was doing and handed Kaneki the tablet. “Here you go.”

Kaneki raised an eyebrow, taking the tablet. He was shocked to see a purchase for Takatsuki’s newest e-book. “Wha…?”

“Here’s my price, Centipede.” Kaneki raised his head and Hide went to the library on his tablet. “I need to ask questions and get your measurements to make sure your suit is perfect but after I do, you stay here and read your creepy book for at least an hour. Long enough to get invested and wanting to finish before I let you leave.” Hide stuck out his hand. “Deal?”

Kaneki couldn’t believe this. He was being forced to read. It seemed he was taking too long to process this strange phenomenon because Hide grabbed his hand and shook it.

“Deal!” Hide said, cheerfully before he walked away.

Kaneki just stared at him, utterly baffled, but his confusion soon gave way to amusement. Well, there were worst things he had been forced into doing.

“What questions did you need from me?” he asked, drinking some more of his coffee.

“Oh, just a few tiny details,” Hide said as he began to jump on top of several tiles, humming a song in rhythm with his hops. When he landed on the last tile, one of the tiles popped open. Kaneki raised an eyebrow, watching as Hide typed on something inside the floor before backing away. There was a low hum before part of the floor opened up and a rack of black fabric rose up. “From the photos, it looked like your suit was made from a high-quality mechamesh, right?”

A what? “Um…yes?” Kaneki wanted that to sound more confident than it had.

That got a chuckle out of Hide. “You don’t have a clue, do you?” Kaneki just hid behind his coffee, not wanting to answer that. He never thought to ask what the suit was; after all, it worked and that’s what mattered, right?

“Hey, hey. No worries.” Hesitantly, Kaneki locked eyes with Hide who just smiled gently. Kaneki felt his cheeks go pink and was certain it had nothing to do with his awkwardness. “I just want to make sure. If you don’t know, I can figure it out, okay?” When Kaneki gave a small nod, Hide grabbed one of the bolts of fabric and brought it over. “Did your suit feel like this one?”

Kaneki ran his hand lightly over the fabric and smiled at the familiar feeling. “Yes, that’s it.”

“High-quality mechamesh,” Hide explained, taking the fabric and placing it on a nearby counter. “Really good for most suits but if you were allergic to something in it, there’s also the molecular mesh.”

“No, this should be fine. Thank you.” Kaneki decided now was the time to ask the dreaded question. “How much will this cost?”

Hide had begun placing several items near the fabric, not even giving Kaneki a passing glance when he said, “I already told you my fee. You read your book and don’t go on patrol until you get your suit.”

“Wait. You were serious about that?” Hide nodded and Kaneki shook his head. “I refuse to those terms.” That made Hide pause; he turned to Kaneki with a raised brow. “I need to pay you for your work.”

“Look, consider it a favor for saving Touka last night.” Kaneki opened his mouth to argue but Hide pretended to zip his mouth shut. “And that’s that.” Kaneki frowned, not happy about the situation or the fact that Hide was now grinning like a madman. “Come on, don’t be pouty.”

Kaneki’s jaw dropped, his mouth making random sounds he didn’t know what to do with. “I-I-I-I…” He cleared his throat and muttered, “I’m not pouting.”

“Keep telling yourself that, buddy,” Hide said, pulling out a measuring tape. “Alright, measurement time!”

The sooner he got this over with, the sooner he’d be allowed to read. Standing up, Kaneki removed his jacket and held out his arms. Hide tilted his head. “Aren’t you going to take off your shirt?”

Kaneki’s face went red and he crossed his arms. “I know you don’t need me to do that to take my measurements.” “Normally, no but I don’t want you to ruin your shirt when you take out your tentacle thingies,” Hide explained, wiggling his fingers with a teasing smirk.

“T-they’re not tentacles,” was Kaneki’s weak retort. He could make them claws and a tail as well.

That just sent Hide into a wave of laughter and it really wasn't fair how cute he was.

Hide’s laughter died down. “Sorry, sorry. But I really don’t want you to ruin your shirt though I can put some fun patches over the holes if you want.” Hide walked over to a cabinet and pulled out several colorful patches. “I’m thinking the stars~!”

Kaneki imagined his back covered in rainbow stars like some kind of elementary school art project and he just let out a sigh as he started unbuttoning his shirt. He was just going to get it over with. Placing the shirt on the chair, Kaneki turned around and held out his arms.

“Damn.”

Kaneki looked over his shoulder, concerned. “Something wrong?”

“Not a thing,” Hide told him, getting closer. “You’re okay with me getting in your personal space, right?”

He wasn’t but he could handle it. “Just don’t tickle me.”

“No worries. Surprise tickles are only an honor of people who stick with me long enough.”

Kaneki didn’t know if he was serious or not and he didn’t want to find out. He stood as still as possible while Hide held the measuring tape against his arms before going to his back. He moved quickly, muttering to himself, as he measured part by part. When he rounded to Kaneki’s front to measure his collar bone, Kaneki was able to see just how focused he was. It was amazing how quickly someone could change when they got into their work.

“That should be it.” Hide backed away from Kaneki before showing another wiggling motion with his fingers. “Alright, let them out.”

Kaneki rubbed his arm, a bit nervous. “You realize my kagune are dangerous, right?” _‘That I’m dangerous,’_ he left unsaid.

“Oh, that’s what they’re called?” Kaneki nodded and Hide simply shrugged his shoulders. “Well, you don’t plan to hurt me with them, right?” He could. He could rip Hide apart easily. Hide didn’t seem to care as he laughed. “Besides, you’re putting up with me far more than most of my clients so if you haven’t killed me yet, you probably won’t.”

He wasn’t wrong. Kaneki gave him a tired smile. “Do you make it a habit of trying to get a rise out of people who can kill you?”

“I know my limits~” Hide said, moving to see Kaneki’s back. “So…?”

Knowing he wasn’t going to win this, Kaneki took in a deep breath. He let out a shudder when his kagune emerged from his back. No matter how many times he did it, it wasn’t his favorite experience. He glanced back, making sure that Hide was okay. He wasn’t expecting to see Hide staring at his kagune, eyes wide in wonder.

“Wow.” He raised his hand to touch one but paused before looking at Kaneki, hesitant. “Can I touch them?”

 _‘No! Why do you want to touch them? What’s wrong with you?!’_ Kaneki wanted to scream that and many other things at him but all he did was nod.

Hide smiled back before lightly touching one of his kagune. It was already strange that Kaneki could feel through them but it was ten times stranger having someone pet them like they were some house cat, like they weren’t deadly weapons.

“How pretty,” he heard Hide whisper as he continued to stroke the red appendage. “Like a smooth snake.”

“Are…are you done?” Kaneki asked, wanting to put his shirt back on.

“Oh, right. Sorry.” Hide measured his back again before giving him a small pat between his shoulder blades. “Okay, got all your measurements so you can relax and enjoy your book,” Hide told him, going over to the table where the fabric was.

Kaneki couldn’t put his shirt on fast enough. He also put on his jacket before he sat down and hid his face behind the tablet. If any of the people he worked with or threatened could see him now, he would die of embarrassment.

“Do you want something to drink?”

Kaneki didn’t remove the tablet as he reached over and grabbed his coffee. “I have something. Thanks.”

“Ah, my coffee!” Hide ran to the front of the store and came back, practically chugging his coffee. “Man, Anteiku makes the best coffee.”

“That they do,” Kaneki said, taking a small sip of his.

So, how long have you and Touka known each other?” Kaneki didn’t respond to that, not wanting to go down the rabbit hole his answer might lead to. It seemed Hide understood what the silence implied. “Sorry. Off-limits?”

“A bit…”

“Well, I’ll stop bugging you then. Leave you to your creepy book.”

“…” Kaneki finally lowered the tablet, watching as Hide sat at his table to begin cutting the fabric. “…You’re not bothering me,” he told him. Hide was obviously shocked by him suddenly speaking. It’s true Kaneki wasn’t used to someone with this much energy, who talked to him so carefreely. It was different but it wasn’t a bad thing. “…It’s nice to talk to someone.”

Hide kept staring at him before he smiled. Was he always smiling? “Glad to hear. I know I can be a bit much so just let me know if I need to tone it down a bit.”

“Noted.”

Kaneki felt he had said enough and started his forced reading hour. He couldn’t contain his excitement as he read the opening sentence. It really was amazing how Takatsuki could send chills down your spine with just the first page. He was lost in the words, in the characters. Where was the newest murder scene? Was it even real? Was it…?

Kaneki felt a tap on his shoulder and it brought him back to reality. Lowering the tablet, Kaneki looked at Hide who pointed to a clock on the wall.

“Your hour’s up. You can leave if you want.”

Already? But he was only in the fifth chapter. “Can I stay longer?” He hoped he didn’t sound like he was begging.

Hide nodded. “Of course. I was just letting you know that you could leave if you wanted.”

He didn’t. He was actually...content. “Thank you.”

“Want me to get you some more coffee?”

Kaneki looked over at his thermos, shaking his head. “I’m fine. Thank you.”

“For the best. My coffee sucks,” Hide told him, going back to his work.

Kaneki just chuckled at that, glancing at the fabric on the table. “How’s it coming?”

Hide held up a few pieces of fabric that were cut and marked. “It will be a beautiful black…” He paused.

“Battle-suit?” Kaneki offered.

Hide cheered, “Beautiful black battle-suit!”

Kaneki covered his mouth, trying to hide how much he was smiling. It was starting to hurt his face. He went back to the story, wanting to finish as soon as he could.

…

…

There was another tap on his shoulder, bringing Kaneki out of his reading once again. What now?

“Alright, sorry to kick you out but I have to close up shop.”

Kaneki tried to hide his disappointment as Hide gently pried his tablet from Kaneki’s hands. He was just a few chapters away from finishing. They were about to encounter the sociopathic murderer and he needed to know if it was the psychiatrist.

“You can always finish it when you get home…” Hide offered, giving him a pointed stare. “…because you’re not going to leave your house tonight, right?”

As much as he would have wanted to lie, he couldn’t. He needed to finish that book. “I’ll stay home tonight.” Hide just stared at him and Kaneki just stared back. What more did he want? “I…promise?”

And with that, Hide gave him another blinding smile. “That’s what I like to hear.” He gave a bow, holding out his hand. “Allow me to see you out, Mr. Centipede.”

He really didn’t want to hear that from Hide. “…Kaneki.” Hide rose up, confusion evident. Kaneki just sighed in defeat. This man was going to be the death of him. “My name’s Kaneki.”

The thrilled noise Hide made at that was almost inhuman. “Nice to meet you! I’m Hide!” he cried out, sticking his hand out further.

“I know, Hide,” Kaneki said, taking Hide’s hand and pulling himself up.

“Manners are important,” Hide told him, guiding him out the door.

Kaneki shook his head, the smile on his face growing. “I suppose so. Thanks for your time.”

“Always happy to help those who help others.” He felt Hide was giving him too much credit. He didn’t really help people, just took out the scum who could hurt others. Still, who was he to argue against the person giving him a free suit? Hide opened the door for him. “Wait until you see my finished creation.”

“Looking forward to it.”

Hide waved him off. “See ya tomorrow, Kaneki!”

Kaneki gave him a small wave back, heading back to his place. As he walked, he took in a deep breath of the fresh evening air. He couldn’t believe it. When was the last time he had ever felt this refreshed? When he was actually looking forward to going back to his tiny apartment for something other than a shower and a nap?

Pulling out his work phone, he dialed in Touka’s number. There were a few rings before Touka picked up with an annoyed “What?”.

“Can I ask you for a favor?” Touka grumbled something but nothing that explicitly said no. “I told Darkwing I’d go on patrol with him tonight but I can’t make it.”

“I’m not going on patrol with my shitty brother. We’d kill each other before we caught any bad guys.”

Kaneki knew Touka and Ayato had been working on their relationship but he also knew that if they could avoid each other, they would. Still…

“Please. If I tell him I can’t go, he’ll go alone and do something reckless.”

She scoffed. “Sounds like him. And why can’t you go?”

He knew that question was coming but he didn’t know how to answer. “I’m…not feeling well…” There was silence on the other line. The longer it dragged on, the more Kaneki wished he had just told Ayato to go by himself.

“Centipede…” Oh, oh, why did she say it like that? Like she knew exactly what was happening? “Did you promise a certain blonde dumbass that you wouldn’t go on patrol tonight?”

Kaneki covered his face as if Touka could see the growing blush on his cheeks. “…Maybe…”

“Wow.” She chuckled on the other end. “You owe me, asshole.” And then she hung up.

He was pretty sure that meant she was going to meet with Ayato. Hopefully, he wouldn’t hear anything in the news tomorrow. But those were the problems for tomorrow. He had a book to finish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What are fight scenes?! What city is this taking place in?! I don't know!
> 
> There was a lot of rewriting the measuring scene to make it so Hide was flirting but without making him seem like a total creeper. It's amazing what a fine line that is.
> 
> So, thanks for your time!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, hi!
> 
> Here's chapter two! Thanks so much for reading chapter one, guys! I appreciate it!
> 
> (Also, I kind of realized that there was no reason for Hide to make Kaneki a whole suit when his was just scratched but...whatever...)

_“And last night was a real treat!”_

The giant screen on the skyscraper’s side showed a video of someone trying their best to keep up with Bloodwing and Darkwing as they flew through the sky.

_“It’s rare to see both winged warriors together! Lucky for bad guys because these two are a true dynamic duo!”_

It switched to another video of the two siblings tag-teaming a villain with the ability to grow. Darkwing flew around him while Bloodwing went for his eyes.

_“We tried to get an interview with the two. As expected of a vigilante, Darkwing wasn’t too interested in speaking with us. But what was strange was the usually cordial Bloodwing didn’t stop to speak, either. She must have been tired from her fight—”_

Kaneki stopped paying attention to the news report and continued his walk to Rabbits and Ribbons. He did his best to drown out the commuters and focus on the voicemail Touka left him.

_“…still fucking reckless but he at least swooped down and saved the people before that giant asshole fell on them. But don’t tell him I said that. It will go to his head and you still owe me.”_

That was where it cut off. Kaneki chuckled as he pocketed his phone. That was almost exactly what Ayato had told him, though less ‘still fucking reckless but did a good job’ and more ‘still a bossy bitch but at least she listened to my plan’. It looked like the two were able to work it out a bit; that was good to hear.

As Kaneki walked, he couldn’t stop thinking about the book he finished last night. It had been so good and the fact he had put it off for so long kind of frustrated him. He really did need to read more.

His eyes took note of a news report on another screen. Apparently, there was going to be a rare jewel transported to the city museum that night. Kaneki stopped, narrowing his eyes at the blue jewel. Something like that was a high-quality target for thieves which meant he needed to be on patrol tonight. Reading would just have to wait.

Kaneki picked up the pace, wanting to get his suit as soon as possible. When he saw the familiar bright yellow of Rabbits and Ribbons, he slowed down to a stroll. Kaneki thought on yesterday, on his interactions with the store’s energetic owner and he couldn’t help but smile.

Usually when he got any touch-ups on his suit, he made it as quick as possible. What worked, what didn’t work, and then leave until he could come pick it up. Tsukiyama would try to keep him longer, learn more about him, but it always set Kaneki on edge.

For some reason, being around Hide wasn’t like that. It was amazing how easy the other man managed to pull him into his rhythm. How content he made Kaneki feel.

_‘And he’s really cute when he smiles.’_

Kaneki shook those thoughts from his mind as he entered Rabbits and Ribbons, his mood brightening even more when he saw Hide. The other man was up on a ladder. It looked like he had been hanging up outfits.

“Hey,” Kaneki said when he was close. Hide didn’t respond. “Hello?” No response. Kaneki raised an eyebrow, going to the side to try and get a good look at Hide. He was staring off into the distance, eyes glazed over and his body completely still.

What was going on? Kaneki could feel the panic setting in. “Hide?” No response. What was wrong with him? He…he couldn’t be… “Hide!”

Hide blinked. “Huh? Wha…” Whatever Hide was going to say was cut off when his foot went backwards and he fell off the ladder. “Ahh!”

Thankfully, Kaneki was there to catch him before he hit the ground. Kaneki held him carefully as he scanned Hide for any injuries. When Kaneki didn’t see any, he tried to calm down.

“Are you okay?”

Hide seemed frazzled but he was able to reply after a few deep breaths. “I’m good.” He was responding so that was already better. Hide looked up at Kaneki with big brown eyes, smiling like he hadn’t almost busted his skull open. “Hey.”

“Did you have a seizure? Should I call the hospital?” Weren’t you supposed to measure how long the seizure was? He’s pretty sure he read that somewhere.

Hide frowned, probably realizing how concerned Kaneki still was. “No, no, I’m fine. I just had a vision,” Hide explained. “When I go like this…” Hide tried to replicate the blank stare he had a minute ago. “…it means I’m having a vision. Puts me in a trance.”

That was enough to settle Kaneki’s nerves. He had more questions but then he realized he was still holding Hide in his arms. His face went red and he muttered, “Can…can you stand?”

“I don’t know,” Hide said, placing a hand to his forehead and feigning weakness. “It’d be nice if a strong strapping hero carried me to a chair so I could rest.”

Kaneki just stared at him, contemplating dropping him the three feet to the ground. Instead, he settled for gently placing Hide’s feet on the ground, making sure he was steady before he let go.

Hide pouted as he walked to the counter. “Party pooper.”

Choosing to ignore that, Kaneki went back to his earlier worries. “Do your visions usually put you in danger like that?”

Hide took a seat on his stool. “Nah, there’s only been one time I ever got hurt during a vision. Was riding on my bike and ended up in the hospital with ten stitches.”

Hide pulled up the sleeve on his right arm. He pointed to the part near his inner elbow where a faded scar went straight down. “Not the coolest scar story but it's mine,” Hide said, putting his sleeve back.

Kaneki thought on the many scars that lined his body. The memories that surfaced when he focused on a single one. Thinking further, he hadn’t realized that Hide must have seen a good number of them when he measured Kaneki for his suit. He probably saw so many heroes; hopefully, he didn’t think twice about it.

“Are you okay?” Kaneki blinked a few times, brought out of his thoughts. Hide just stared at him, obviously worried. “You spaced out for a sec. Do _you_ have visions?”

“No, just thinking. What was the vision you just had?”

Hide let out a low whine. “I was surrounded by screaming people.” Kaneki raised an eyebrow, not sure how he would end up in a situation like that. Hide explained, “I knew some of the people in the vision. They’re part of a wedding and I’m pretty sure they’re having the rehearsal today so…”

Kaneki winced. He didn’t know anything about designing but he knew that the situation itself didn’t sound like a good one.

“Sorry.” Kaneki didn’t know what else to say.

Hide shook his head, telling him, “Hey, no sorries when you didn’t do anything.” He hopped off his stool, pointing to the back room. “Besides, you didn’t come to hear my life story. You came for a costume.” Then he crossed his arms and stared sternly at Kaneki. “And you’ll get it because you didn’t go out last night, right?”

Kaneki was pleased to tell him, “I stayed home, finished my book, ate some cold pizza, and passed out on my couch.”

It’s amazing how boring and sad that sounded but honestly, it was one of the best nights Kaneki had in a while. It also seemed to be the answer Hide wanted to hear as he laughed before walking to the back room.

“That’s what I like to hear!”

Once the two were in the back, Hide hummed another song as he danced around on the tiles. Instead of an array of fabric, a small rack where several suits were hung appeared. Hide slid the suits one-by-one until he found a familiar-looking black one.

“And here we are!” Hide held it up proudly. “What do you think?”

Kaneki took the suit from Hide, running his fingers over it, and smiled. It was just like his old one.

“It’s perfect. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet. Make sure it fits.” Kaneki went still at the offer. Wait, was he supposed to change right here? In front of Hide? “Changing room’s right over there,” Hide said, pointing to a closed door.

Changing room? Right, of course. Kaneki simply nodded his head in acknowledgement, walking silently to the room. As he started changing, he tried to ignore how hard his heart was beating. Was this really all it took to send him into a panic? The idea of changing in front of someone attractive? Maybe he did need to interact with people more…

….or never talk to anyone ever again.

One of the two.

Kaneki elected to think on that another time and focus on the present. And presently, he was checking his reflection in the dressing room mirror. It really did look exactly like his old one. Felt like it too. He jumped a few times and pulled out a kagune to make sure it didn’t go through the suit. Everything looked good.

Kaneki came out of the room for a final opinion. Hide was putting something into a backpack and stopped when he saw Kaneki. He came up, circling around Kaneki several times, pulling at the fabric in certain areas.

“Not bad,” Hide muttered before looking at Kaneki. “How’s it feel? No bunching up, right?”

Kaneki shook his head, walking over to another mirror. “It feels great.” He’d be able to go on patrol tonight without any problems.

“Cool. Um…I have something else for you.”

Kaneki looked over his shoulder. Hide went to the clothing rack and pulled out a short black cape with a hood. It split down the middle on the front, back and sides.

“It’s to protect your back when your kagune aren’t out,” Hide explained.

Kaneki blinked, surprised. He hadn’t thought on something like that. “You made that and my suit so quickly?” How fast did he sew?

“You’d be surprised what I make when the inspiration hits me.” Hide ran up to him. “Here!”

Hide wrapped the cape around Kaneki’s shoulders, walking around to his front to clasp it on. Kaneki felt himself blush from the close proximity while Hide focused on securing the cape.

Kaneki tried to distract himself. “I thought capes were out,” he joked.

Hide made a face. “Look-wise, capes are always in. Function-wise, they’re a hit or miss.” Hide let go of the clasp and grabbed the front of the cape. “That’s why I tried to make sure it wouldn’t be in your way. If it does, you can forget it. Also, it’s not a cape; it’s a cloak. There’s a difference.”

Hide moved away from Kaneki so he could test the _cloak_ out. Kaneki moved his arms around, not feeling any new restrictions from the fabric. He brought one kagune out, smiling when the cloak didn’t hinder it and when he attempted to damage the cloak, there was no lasting damage.

“Obviously it won’t be perfect since you’ll be jumping around and stuff, but a bit of extra protection never hurt.” Hide circled around, analyzing the cloak, and grinned broadly. “And it looks pretty snazzy if I say so myself.”

Kaneki was certain Hide meant the actual design but he couldn’t deny that it looked good on him when he looked in the mirror.

That was when Kaneki noticed the symbol stitched right above where the cloak split down the middle. It was tiny but Kaneki could tell it was some kind of red spiral.

“What’s this?” Kaneki asked, pointing at it.

Surprisingly, Hide seemed sheepish at the question. “It’s…it’s a centipede,” he whispered, scratching his cheek.

Kaneki looked at it closer in the mirror and was able to see the small legs as it circled in on itself. But that wasn’t what he meant.

“Why did you sew it on here?”

If anything, Hide seemed to get more embarrassed. His cheeks went pink as he looked at anything but Kaneki. It was both cute and concerning.

“I just thought…it looked cool.”

Kaneki stayed quiet, hoping Hide would elaborate a little more. When he realized Kaneki wasn’t going to speak, Hide sighed in defeat.

“I know vigilantes don’t have symbols usually but I thought it would look good on you.” Kaneki saw the way Hide fiddled with his shirt, probably anxious over what Kaneki thought of it. “If you don’t like it, I can go take it off now and—”

“I love it.”

Hide went silent and Kaneki just snickered at the stunned reaction. He looked back in the mirror, paying close attention to his new symbol. It really worked well with the rest of his costume.

He then focused on Hide’s expression in the mirror. “It’s great. Thank you.” Kaneki could feel his chest get lighter when he saw the delighted grin Hide had from the simple compliment.

“Awesome. I know some people don’t like when you change their suits so got kinda worried.”

“I don’t really mind.”

The idea of changing his suit didn’t really matter to him. After all, the main point was to protect him and make sure he was able to fight.

As Kaneki stared at the cloak, he realized something: “You weren’t going to let me pay for this, were you?”

Any awkwardness Hide had before was gone at the question. “Why would I make you pay for something you didn’t ask for?” he scoffed.

He was right and that meant…

Kaneki removed the cloak, folded it up neatly then placed it on the table. “Then I refuse.”

“Wait, what?”

“I didn’t ask for the cloak so I can refuse it, can’t I?” Kaneki argued.

Hide was obviously baffled by the turn of events. “You can’t be serious.” Kaneki didn’t say anything as he went back to the changing room. “But-but-but you just said you loved it and it’s useful!” Hide stopped him from closing the door to the changing room, holding up the cloak. “You’re honestly not going to take it just because I don’t want you to pay for it?!”

Kaneki gently pressed a finger to Hide’s forehead before pushing him away from the door. “That’s right.”

Before he shut the door, he took note of how Hide’s cheeks puffed up in anger. He kind of looked like a hamster. Kaneki quickly closed the door so Hide couldn’t hear his chuckles. Great, now that mental image was going to be in his head all day.

As Kaneki started changing, he could hear Hide talking outside the door. Something about how he was being stubborn for no reason. If that wasn’t the pot calling the kettle black. Kaneki finished changing and hung the suit over his arm before opening the door.

Hide was still standing there, holding the cloak and pouting. _‘Like a hamster.’_ Kaneki coughed into his hand, doing his best to keep up his stoicism.

“I would like to buy a cloak to go with my suit, please.”

Hide just stared at him and huffed. “I won’t forget this.” Hide marched to the front of the store.

Kaneki smirked as he carefully folded his suit then followed Hide. Hide was sitting in front of the register, arms crossed and the cloak in a bag. Kaneki saw a price on the register and winced. That was going into his paycheck for the next week.

Hide saw his face and softened up. “You can still have it free.”

Shaking his head, Kaneki reached for his wallet. “You shouldn’t be trying to give away your hard work.”

“I’m not. I get paid by the city for making these costumes,” Hide explained.

Kaneki knew that the city had a specific fund for businesses that assisted heroes but that was only for heroes that were a part of the city’s program.

“I’m a vigilante. You don’t get paid for me.”

Hide rolled his eyes. “And you don’t get paid by the city either. So I’m trying to help.”

“Your work’s really good,” Kaneki said, holding out the cash. Hide didn’t take it so Kaneki took a play from his book. He reached forward, grabbed Hide’s hand, then placed the money in his palm. “And you should be paid for it.”

“…You’re stubborn,” Hide said, putting the money in his register.

Kaneki chose to ignore the hypocrisy. He got what he wanted. He placed his suit in the bag with the cloak and smiled at Hide.

“I really do appreciate your help.”

That got Hide to smile back. “Well, I’m glad you like it.” He scratched the back of his neck. “Hey, would you—”

The phone rang, cutting off whatever Hide was going to ask. Hide looked at the phone like it would bite him. Hesitantly, he reached for it and picked it up.

“Hel—”

Hide pulled the phone away when the person on the other line started screaming. Kaneki flinched, watching as Hide was yelled at until the person probably lost breath. Once he was able, Hide began talking.

“Ms. Ishiyama, I understand and will be right there to fix it.”

Hide hung up before he could be yelled at again. Sighing, he dragged himself off of his stool and went to the back room. Kaneki stayed put until Hide came back, wearing the backpack from earlier and walking with a bike.

“The wedding?”

Hide groaned loudly. “The owner’s cat accidentally got into the room where the wedding dress was. Claws plus lace is never a good combo.”

“Will you be able to fix it in time?”

“Thankfully, the lace is an overskirt and not sewn into the chiffon so as long as it was just the lace, I should be fine.”

Kaneki simply nodded in response, not really understanding what Hide was talking about but wanting to show some sign of support.

“Do you need any help?” Kaneki asked, holding the door open for Hide.

“Nah, I’m good.” Hide locked the front door before mounting the bicycle. “It’s not too far.”

That shouldn’t have been concerning but… “Didn’t you just tell me you once had an accident on your bike because of a vision?”

Hide waved that off. “That was years ago. Besides, I had a vision today so the possibility of me having another one is super low.”

Not encouraging in the slightest. “Which means it’s still a possibility.” Hide opened his mouth to argue but Kaneki cut him off. “Hide, I already saved you once today. You can’t blame me for being worried.”

Hide didn’t say anything, just staring at him. Kaneki started to worry that he had overstepped his bounds. Before he could apologize, Hide sighed.

“Yeah, I can’t…” Hide patted him on the shoulder. “…but you worry about a lot of people, don’t you?”

Kaneki kept his mouth shut but it was obvious from Hide’s smirk that he knew he was right. “Know what will make you feel better?” Hide asked. Kaneki shook his head. “An ‘I-got-there-safe’ text!”

“…A what?”

“An ‘I-got-there-safe’ text!” Hide dug into his backpack before he pulled out a cellphone and put it in Kaneki’s hands. “Enter your number!”

Kaneki looked at Hide then down at the bright green cellphone. Well, it probably would make him feel better if he at least got confirmation that Hide was okay. And it would be nice to have his number…in case he needed a patch job or something.

Before he could overthink it further, Kaneki typed his personal cell number into the phone and gave it back to Hide. Hide took it back before he called Kaneki’s phone.

“I promise to text you as soon as I get there,” Hide told him, pocketing his cell. “Trust me?”

“Not really,” was Kaneki’s honest reply.

“Great!” That seemed to be the end of the conversation as Hide waved then started biking away. “See you, Neki!”

Kaneki gave a wave back as he watched Hide get farther and farther away. “…Neki?” He had been called worse things.

Looking down at the bag in his hand, Kaneki sighed through his nose as he headed home. He should get a bit more rest before he went out tonight. Maybe he could start another book.

No. If he started, he wouldn’t stop until he finished or fell asleep. He had already wasted a night and he couldn’t afford two in a row.

A small voice reminded him that it wasn’t a waste.

_‘You were able to relax a bit and now you’re more ready to fight tonight.’_

Then came the voice that always seemed to be present, the one that reminded him how much filth existed in this city.

**_‘But who wonders how many people might have been hurt last night because you were relaxing?’_ **

_‘Touka and Ayato worked really well together last night. I’m sure they did great.’_

**_‘So, it’s okay to let others work hard while you just sit at home, reading you book?’_ **

_‘That’s not what—’_

**_‘I can’t believe you’re that useless. Letting criminals get away because you don’t want to do something.’_ **

_‘No, no, that isn’t it. It—’_

**_‘By all means, stay home. Let them move on from petty theft. It’s on you when they hurt someone.’_ **

Kaneki stopped, looking up in dull surprise. When did he get back to his apartment?

…He needed a nap. And as soon as he woke up, he needed to be focused.

Kaneki stepped inside his apartment, putting the bag down by the door. Sitting on the couch, he took off his wig and tossed it on the table. Kaneki pulled out his cellphone to set an alarm and realized he had several notifications from an unknown number.

Right. Hide had promised to text him when he got there safe.

He shouldn’t open it. He’d get distracted again. It was enough to know that Hide texted, right?

That’s what he thought but it didn’t stop him from opening his text messages to see whatever Hide had sent.

_Safe! :D_

_Meet the lil fuzzball! >:(_

Kaneki scrolled down to see a picture of a small orange tabby wrapped up in white thread and fabric. He imagined Hide walking into the room where the cat was wrapped up in his ruined lace. He probably made his angry hamster face again. Kaneki couldn’t help but chuckle when he thought on it. He went to the next message.

_Cant be mad! Too cute~! =u=_

Then there was another picture. It was of Hide, holding the cat up to his face and grinning broadly at the camera.

Kaneki lied down on his couch, staring at the picture as the warm feeling just flooded his chest. How good was Hide at letting the worries of life roll off his back? He felt his fingers itch as he thought on whether he should text back. It’d be rude not to and maybe Hide would send him more pictures.

**_‘So distracted. So pathetic.’_ **

Kaneki’s grip on his phone tightened. With a sigh, he set an alarm and placed the phone on the table before he could change his mind. He closed his eyes, determined to rest until it was time to go out.

…

…

…

_Ring-ring Ring-ring_

Kaneki moaned, reaching over to the table to shut off his phone. That didn’t feel like he had actually gotten rest but it was clear from how dark it was outside that he had slept the entire afternoon away.

Rolling off the couch, Kaneki stretched until his back cracked. It was going to be one those nights but at least he had a plan in mind. He should get to the museum as soon as possible.

Kaneki changed into his suit and once he put on his cloak, he went to his bedroom and stood in front of the mirror. He pulled up the hood, admiring the new addition. It kind of made him look more threatening. He would have to thank Hide again. Kaneki glanced to the living room, wondering if Hide had texted him anymore. Was he mad that Kaneki hadn’t responded to him? Maybe he should…

No. Now, wasn’t the time to think on that. He had to focus. He picked his mask up off the floor, running a thumb over the black leather that would cover his right eye then over the zippered mouth. He secured the mask to his face before looking back in the mirror.

When the mask was first suggested, he thought it was too much. If he looked like he was trying too hard, no one would take him seriously.

Turns out, the horrifying Centipede was ten times scarier when all you saw was an open snarl surrounded by black.

_'Time to get to work.’_

Centipede crawled out through his window before making his way across the rooftops to the museum. Once he was near the museum, he jumped to the ground and took note of the surrounding area.

Several armored trucks. A handful of guards and police officers. No other heroes, for some reason. Strange.

He crept along the cars until he found someone talking on the radio. Cops weren’t too keen on sharing their information with vigilantes but he knew how to get what he needed.

_“…hostage situation…hostile…several heroes on scene…”_

Well, that answered that question. A hostage situation was more important than this but there was no need for Centipede to be there if so many others were. He should stay focused here. No telling whether the thieves would be violent.

Centipede sneaked back over to the museum, climbing up to the roof and making his way to the skylight. Down below, he saw where the jewel was supposed to be on display. There were more guards on standby and a man in a suit talking to them. Probably the museum curator.

Finding a vantage point hidden in the shadows, Centipede waited. He had never done a stakeout at a museum before so he wasn’t sure what to expect. Would they try to enter through the roof? Barrel through the front and take the jewel while it was being transferred over?

_‘Guess we’ll see.’_

That’s what he thought but as he sat and waited, he was starting to have second thoughts on this. Each time he heard a noise, he ran to see if something was happening but it was never anything interesting. He wasn’t keeping track of the time but at least an hour had passed when the jewel finally arrived. Most of the security had left after it was transferred to its case without any hassle and at least another hour passed.

He sighed through his nose, realizing that he had thought too much on this. By now, that hostage situation was probably over. Had he really wasted his night with this?

“Help!”

Centipede’s ears perked up from the distant cry. He ran towards the direction of the screams and peered over the rooftop. In the alley below, Centipede watched as a larger man loomed over another who was curled up on the ground.

Letting out a snarl, Centipede leapt off the roof. He aimed straight for the assailant who managed to dodge him. Centipede stood between him and the man he had been attacking. Glancing at the man on the ground, he didn’t see any injuries; he turned his attention to the mugger.

“Leave,” Centipede growled, cracking one of his knuckles.

The mugger looked like he was going to take his advice before he steeled himself and took a fighting stance.

“Make me.”

The man sprinted towards Centipede who brought out his kagune and sent them forward. The mugger screamed before he dodged Centipede’s attack. Centipede wasted no time in rushing towards him and tackling him to the ground.

The man gulped, giving him a nervous smile. “Was this really worth it?” Centipede hissed, kagune raised up to strike.

“Made a good distraction.”

Centipede’s eyes went wide and he cried out when he was suddenly propelled off the thief and his vision went dark. He tried to get up but he was trapped inside of some kind of net.

He could still hear. He heard the man he _thought_ was a mugger say, “Thought he was gonna kill me.”

“I will when I get out of here!” Centipede swore as he tried to break out. He hissed when he realized that the more he struggled, the tighter the net got.

Centipede heard a mocking laugh. “Thanks so much for rescuing me, Centipede, but we must get going.”

There was a loud noise…an alarm. “The museum,” he whispered, heart sinking into his stomach.

“Didn’t actually think a hero would be here. Always have a contingency plan.” He heard the sound of footsteps running off as one of the thieves shouted, “Don’t worry! The net will break down sooner or later!”

The thief’s laughter taunted him as he ran off. Centipede refused to wait for later and managed to find the seam of the net and free himself. He burst out of the net, ready to give chase…

…But there was no one on in the alley but him. He could feel the panic set in, searching the area for any sign of the thieves. Centipede jumped back up to the museum’s roof. He peered down through the skylight and saw people talking around an empty display case.

Someone looked up at him and Centipede took off before anyone could catch him. He ran from roof to roof, just kept running until he tripped and fell on the hard concrete. He got to his knees and looked down at his scraped hands, shaking in…rage? Fear? Why was he shaking?

**_‘You failed.’_ **

Centipede let out a roar as he banged his hands on the roof. He unleashed an onslaught of punches, imagining the thieves who had tricked him – **_mocked you! made you their fool!_** – just imagined them suffering for what they did to him. He screamed and punched and thought until his voice went sore and his hands went numb.

Then he just stayed there...with his bloody knuckles and throbbing head...as he thought on his failure, one of many.

Eventually, he’d get up. He’d head back to his apartment, try to wash the stench away, try to rest but for now…

…he just stayed there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, you have good days and sometimes, you have bad days. Don't worry. Kaneki will have more good days in the future.


	3. Chapter 3

Kaneki tried to ignore his pounding headache as he waited for the office coffee maker to finish his poor excuse for coffee. Once it was ready, he went to grab his mug but it was gone. He had grabbed a mug, right?

“Normally…” Kaneki pinched the bridge of his nose when he heard the familiar condescending tone. “…you’d have sensed me down the hall.”

“I’m not in the mood, Rize,” he hissed. Kaneki let go of his face and glared at the purple-haired woman who held his mug between her fingers. “Give it.”

She smirked at his misery. “Rough night?”

Kaneki kept glaring and held out his hand. “Mug.”

Rize frowned at him. “Can’t you ask nicely?” she asked, sounding absolutely hurt. Good thing he knew what a good actress she was.

“Please give me my mug back before I hurt you.”

Rize placed the mug on the counter and Kaneki snatched it before filling it with coffee. He downed it as fast as he could then went to refill it.

“Oh, you _are_ a mess…more so than usual.” Kaneki grabbed his second mug of coffee, walking to his desk. He could hear the click of Rize’s heels as she followed him. “Come now, Kaneki. We’re coworkers. You can talk to me.”

“I _will_ dump this coffee on you,” Kaneki threatened.

“We both know you won’t waste the caffeine.”

“What are you two doing?”

Kaneki almost jumped from the new voice. He looked up and saw their boss, Arima, looking as bored as usual. It was amazing how easy it was for him to sneak up on people.

“Arima, are they any projects you can add to my workload?”

He just stared at him, silently judging, before he said, “I may have a few. Why so suddenly?”

Kaneki quickly explained, “I had to purchase a new suit for my patrol. Went a bit too much into the budget.” He didn’t want to know what Arima thought he might have been spending it on.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Rize staring at him with a wide smirk.

_‘Oh, that can’t be good.’_

“Be more careful,” Arima ordered as he walked off. “I’ll email you the extra work.”

“Thank you,” Kaneki said, ignoring that blow to his pride as he walked to his desk. Rize didn’t say anything as she followed him. He waited until he was sitting before turning to her. “What?”

“We both know that Tsukiyama makes your suits but he’s off doing one of his gaudy fashion shows.” Rize’s smirk only grew as she studied him. “Who made your suit, Kaneki?”

“None of your business, Kamishiro.” He turned to his computer, deciding that was the end of the conversation.

Apparently, Rize didn’t think it was over. “Ooh. Kamishiro? You _really_ don’t want to talk about it.” She leaned in, chuckling, “We both know that I’ll find out eventually, Kaneki. Why not save yourself the trouble and introduce me now?”

Kaneki wasn’t exaggerating when he told her, “I’d rather die.”

Just because Hide had some strange power that made people gravitate towards him didn’t mean he trusted Rize to be anywhere near him.

“So dramatic,” Rize said, walking to her desk.

_‘It’s not dramatic considering you tried to eat me.’_

Kaneki kept that thought to himself, knowing it would only aggravate his headache further. To this day, he still didn’t know why Arima invited her to work here.

Arima was a retired vigilante so he understood the financial and scheduling concerns of a lot of his employees. However, Rize wasn’t a vigilante; she was a (supposedly former) criminal. Apparently, she didn’t think herself as that. She just thought she was “someone who enjoyed life and wanted what she wanted”.

Kaneki cracked his knuckles one by one as he thought on back then. He was so weak, so scared, but not anymore. Now, he could fight back against her, against him, against anyone whoever tried to hurt him again.

**_‘We could beat her. We should. We should—’_ **

The phone rang, bringing Kaneki out of his thoughts. Kaneki took in a deep breath before he answered the phone. Rize would have to wait. He had a job to do, one that made money that he currently needed.

…

…

Kaneki rolled away from the computer screen and massaged his temples. It was amazing how slowly the day could go by. Arima had already sent him the extra work to edit and he was barely through a third of it.

He glanced at the clock on the wall. He’d just have to finish it when he comes back from his lunch break.

Locking up his computer, Kaneki stood up and walked out of the office. He’d grab something quick from the fast food place across the street then be back to work in a flash.

That was what he thought but the giant line going out of the fast food restaurant meant he needed other plans. The next fast food place was a few blocks away; he could still be back quickly.

“Hold up!”

Kaneki kept walking, focused on his goal, when he was grabbed on the shoulder. Instinct kicked in and Kaneki grabbed the assailant’s hand before twisting their wrist. He let out a horrified squeak when he saw Hide waving his free hand while he grimaced in pain.

“Ow, ow, ow!”

“Oh my god.” Kaneki let go and bowed as low as he could. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Hide rubbed his wrist, grumbling, “Stupid premonition powers couldn’t warn me that was coming?”

Kaneki apologized again.

“Nah, I should have known better than to surprise you,” Hide told, offering him a weak smile. “You busy?”

Kaneki stood up straight. “No, I’m on my lunch break.”

“Great!” Hide wrapped an arm around Kaneki’s shoulders. Apparently, he was no longer concerned that Kaneki almost broke his wrist. “We can have lunch together. My treat!”

That wasn’t a good idea. He had to get back. “Um…I don’t…don’t want to keep you…”

“Come on! I’m thinking hamburger steaks!”

Kaneki’s stomach grumbled at the mention of his favorite food. He covered his red cheeks with his hand, ignoring the way Hide was grinning at him.

“Is that a yes~?”

Kaneki didn’t respond but he offered no resistance as Hide dragged him to Big Girl’s. When the two entered the restaurant, Kaneki could feel himself start to drool from the delicious smell. He hadn’t had hamburger steaks in forever.

“You…” He swallowed. He had to keep his head. “…you don’t have to—”

“Table for two, please!” Hide called out to a waitress who smiled at him before guiding the two over to a table. Hide pushed Kaneki into a chair then took the seat across from him. “Want something to drink?”

Kaneki sighed, realizing he wasn’t getting out of this. “I’ll just have water, please.”

“And I’ll have an orange soda, thanks!”

When the waitress left, Kaneki pleaded, “Please let me pay for my half.”

“Maybe…if you tell me something.” Hide held out his cellphone, pouting. “Why didn’t you respond to my cute cat pictures? “

He knew that was coming. The waitress came back with their drinks and as Hide ordered for them, Kaneki tried to think on what he could say that wouldn’t upset Hide any further. Once the waitress was gone, Hide turned his attention back to Kaneki.

“I…” Kaneki glanced at Hide who just stared back, waiting patiently. “I…didn’t have a good night last night.” Kaneki shut his eyes tight, kicking himself. That may have been true, but it sounded so pathetic.

“Are you okay?”

Hesitantly, Kaneki opened his eyes and saw the genuine concern on Hide’s face. He felt himself relax when he realized that Hide wasn’t judging him.

“I’m…I’m fine. Just…” He glanced around the restaurant. It wasn’t too crowded but there were still too many people for him to feel comfortable talking about his vigilantism.

“You don’t have to tell me,” Hide assured him, tapping his fingers on the side of his cup. “Just wanted to make sure I wasn’t bugging you.”

“No, that’s not it,” Kaneki insisted. “I appreciated that you let me know you were safe and…” Kaneki stared down at his glass of water, trying to hide how embarrassed he was. “…I liked the pictures.”

He bit his lip so he wouldn’t tell Hide how those simple pictures were the highlight of that afternoon. How it was nice to imagine Hide trying to sew while a kitten batted around his leftover fabric. How he wanted to know…

“How do you…” Kaneki froze, realizing he was talking out loud.

Hide raised an eyebrow. “How do I…?”

“Nothing. Never mind,” he said, hoping Hide would let it go.

“...Okay. What do you want to talk about instead?” Hide asked, offering him an out.

“Um…did you finish the dress?”

Hide nodded, making a peace sign. “Finished it and got some yummy leftovers.” Hide reached into pocket and grabbed his cellphone. “You wanna see the dress? It’s one of my best.”

“I’d like that.” Hide handed him the phone and Kaneki stared at the picture on the screen, eyes wide in amazement. “Beautiful.” Kaneki swiped to the next picture, seeing another angle to the dress.” How long did it take you?”

“Technically, two weeks but that involved all the designing, customizing, adding the really tiny details like…”

Hide walked over to Kaneki’s side of the table, leaning close so he could zoom in on one of the pictures. Kaneki went stiff, trying to focus on whatever Hide was trying to show him but it was difficult when he just wanted to look at the way Hide’s eyes lit up as he talked about his work.

Hide turned to him, asking, “What do you…” He went quiet, probably realizing just how close he was to Kaneki’s face. “Oh, uh…” Hide backed away then returned to his seat. His face went a cute shade of red. “Heh, sorry about that.”

“No, no, i-it’s fine…” Kaneki insisted, handing Hide his phone back. “Um…you’re really amazing.”

“Thanks.” Hide twiddled his thumbs for a moment. “So…what do _you_ do for work?”

“I’m…” Kaneki looked at Hide, baffled. “You know what I do.”

“I mean, that involves a lunch break.”

“Oh. I’m a copy editor for a publication company.”

Hide got an eager gleam in his eyes. “Ooh! Which one?”

“I just edit them, Hide, so my name won’t be in any articles,” Kaneki explained, watching as Hide’s excitement died.

“Well…I should still buy something you edited to support you.”

Kaneki shook his head. “You’ve done enough for me, you know?” Far too much, in fact.

“Friends support each other! That’s how it works!” Hide argued.

_‘…Friends?’_

The numerous questions Kaneki had vanished when their waitress returned with their food. Kaneki licked his lips when he saw the way the hamburger steak sizzled.

Hide held up his glass. “To good food!”

Kaneki tapped his glass to his. “Cheers to that.”

The second Kaneki took the first bite, his eyes instinctively closed as he savored the taste. It was as good as he remembered. When he opened his eyes, he saw Hide covering his mouth, failing to hide a smile.

“What?”

Hide chuckled. “Sorry, you just looked so…cute…”

“I…I-I am not c-cute,” Kaneki stuttered. He was Centipede, the fearsome vigilante. He was _not_ cute. Hide didn’t seem to agree because he just laughed harder. “Stop it,” he demanded, hiding his face behind his hands.

“I’m…*snickers*…I’m sorry.” Hide took in a few deep breaths before he spoke again, “I’m glad you’re enjoying it.”

Kaneki didn’t say anything because he was. Maybe a bit too much. Definitely too much. He still had work to do. Hide would understand if he just got a to-go box and left. He had things to do, too, right?

Kaneki lowered his hands. “Hide?”

Hide looked up from digging into his food, his mouth covered in steak sauce. “Hmm?” he mumbled, around his fork.

“You…you’ve got a little…”

Kaneki pointed at his face, smile worming its way to his face. Hide looked at his reflection in his glass before he wiped his face with a napkin.

“Better?” Hide asked with a grin…that showed the pieces of steak that got stuck in his teeth.

“Perfect,” Kaneki said, giving up on containing his giggles.

In the end, they left the restaurant after half an hour with Kaneki frowning as they walked out onto the sidewalk.

“Why couldn’t you just let me pay?”

Hide rolled his eyes. “Pretty sure your wallet’s thin after you bought your addition.” Kaneki grumbled to himself, hating that Hide was right. As the two began to walk, Hide asked, “Did it help out?”

Kaneki stared at down at his feet. He had just started to forget. “I didn’t…get a chance to try it out.”

“Well, as long as it didn’t get in your way.”

“It didn’t. I really like it,” Kaneki told him. He looked at Hide from the corner of his eye and smiled when he saw Hide’s grin. “I’ll try to put it to good use tonight.”

Hide’s smile faded and he stopped walking, grabbing Kaneki by the shoulder. “Hey, make sure to take care of yourself. My work’s no good to a dead man.”

**_‘It’s no good to someone who gets tricked by a simple band of thieves.’_ **

Whatever Kaneki was going to say was cut off by a syrupy-sweet “Kaneki~!”

Kaneki felt a sense of dread wash over him. _‘No…’_

It took Rize no time to catch up to them, blocking their path. “Hi~! I was just heading to lunch and…” She turned her gaze to Hide, putting on her best ‘I’m-completely-harmless’ smile. “You must be a friend of Kaneki’s. I’m Rize Kamishiro. How do you do?” she said, offering a small bow.

Hide bowed in return. “I’m fine. Hideyoshi Nagachika but call me Hide.”

What was an inconspicuous way to tell Hide not to talk to this she-devil?

“Hello, Hide. What were you two doing?”

“I’m going back to the office,” Kaneki told her, hoping his tone implied how quickly he would end her if she tried anything.

There was a split second where Rize’s smile turned predatory. “Did you finish discussing your suit already? I haven’t gotten a chance to see it but I’m sure Hide did a nice job.”

Before Kaneki could launch himself at Rize, Hide let out a confused “Eh?” He gave Kaneki a onceover before he chuckled. “You have to wear suits to work? Why aren’t you wearing one now?”

Kaneki blinked. What? He glanced over at Rize who didn’t lose her fake smile. “Um…our boss doesn’t have a dress code?” was all he could think to say.

“Lucky. I always get chewed out when I don’t wear my uniform. ‘Get your shit together, errand boy!’ Seidou can be so mean,” Hide said, pouting.

 _‘Errand boy?’_ Was Kaneki missing something?

“Where do you work?” Rize asked.

Hide pointed in the direction of the largest building in the city. “I’m a delivery boy for the Council of Hero Commands.” He scratched the back of his head, chuckling, “Not the coolest job but I get to see some pretty awesome heroes.”

Rize just stared at him, her smile fading a bit. “Oh. How…nice.”

“Yeah, I was walking Kaneki back to his office before I headed back. Wanna walk with us?”

“No, no, I’m fine. I still need to get lunch. Thank you though,” Rize said before walking off, casting another glance at Hide. “You two have fun.”

“Nice to meet you!” Hide cried out, waving her off. He kept waving until she rounded the corner. “She’s pretty.”

“She’s evil,” Kaneki retorted. But that wasn’t the important part. “Um…thanks for…for not…”

Hide winked. “I told you, I know how to keep a secret.”

Kaneki smiled when he remembered that. “Yeah, you did. Where did you come up with that lie?”

“It’s not really a lie. My friends work at the CHC and I run some errands for them,” Hide explained as they continued their walk to Kaneki’s office. “But why’s she so interested in your suit? Does she want one?”

“She knows the person who usually makes my suits so she’s just looking to cause trouble.”

“Double duty like me?”

“No, he’s pretty upfront about it. Shuu Tsukiyama?”

Hide tripped over his own feet and Kaneki grabbed him by the arm to steady him.

“You’re doing a terrible job convincing me you can be left on your own,” Kaneki chuckled. The quip he was expecting didn’t come and Kaneki raised an eyebrow. Hide was blinking so he wasn’t in a trance, just lost in his own world. “What’s wrong?”

“Um…” Hide smiled at him. Why did it look…fake? “Just surprised. Didn’t know you had such a popular designer.”

Kaneki just stared back, not convinced. “Is there…something wrong with him?” He knew why Tsukiyama set him on edge but he couldn’t understand what he could have done to Hide. Maybe it was because they were in the same field.

Hide shook his head. “I’ve never met him but _everyone_ knows him. He’s…amazing…” Hide nibbled on his bottom lip before he nodded. “I have to head back to the shop but I’ll talk to you later, okay?”

That was strange but it wasn’t his place to say. “…Okay…” Hide walked off with a wave, not nearly as energetic as usual. He got a few steps before Kaneki called out, “Hide?” He stopped, looking back at Kaneki over his shoulder. What was he supposed to say? “…if you text…this afternoon…I promise to respond.”

Kaneki felt his cheeks go pink but he didn’t care since Hide gave him a genuine laugh.

“I’ll hold you to it.”

Hide gave a bigger wave before he ran off. Kaneki let out a deep breath as he headed to the office.

That was so strange. He didn’t think Hide was lying about not knowing Tsukiyama but if not, then was it just because Tsukiyama was a famous designer? Was Hide sad that his work wasn’t that popular? No. If he was, he wouldn’t hide his work like he does so what was it?

As he sat down at his desk, he gave himself a light smack on his cheeks. Okay, he had to focus. Edit the work, get money and next time, _he_ could pay for their food.

No. That wasn’t the reason. It wasn’t like he was just waiting to go out and eat with Hide again. He just meant that the next time he saw Hide, he could repay him. That was all.

_“Friends support each other!”_

He never did get to ask if Hide really thought that, that they were friends. As Kaneki began editing his next document, he kept thinking on how much fun that simple lunch with Hide had been and how it would be nice to have more.

…

…

Hours later, the sun was close to setting and he had finally finished most of his work. His eyeballs were prickling but now he could…get ready for the night. Kaneki groaned as he picked himself up and headed to the elevator.

“Kaneki.” Kaneki was too tired to be surprised by Arima’s sudden appearance. “Try not to die.”

Kaneki gave a simple wave of acknowledgement as the elevator shut.

Thankfully, the office was only a few minutes from his apartment so he’d be able to rest for a moment before night came. Kaneki lied down on his couch, wondering what he should do until then.

_Beep beep_

He reached into his pocket, pulling out his cellphone and smiling when he saw a notification from Hide.

From Hide

_Holding u2 it! :P_

Kaneki got comfortable as he typed back:

To Hide

_And I’m keeping it._

He chuckled when he got a string of exclamation points in response. That was good, right?

From Hide

_!!!!!!!!!!!!_

_YAY! :D What ru doin?!_

_Im makin a corset X_X_

To Hide

_About to head on patrol._

Kaneki waited for Hide to respond. He knew the moment he put on his suit, he wouldn’t be focused on anything else. He had to make up for last night and he didn’t want to leave Hide hanging…again.

_Beep beep_

From Hide

_Promse 2b safe? :(_

Kaneki just stared at that simple message and sighed. What was he supposed to say to that?

_I promise. **‘That’s a lie.’**_

_I can’t. **‘So cruel.’**_

_Don’t worry. **‘You’ll make him.’**_

Kaneki typed and erased and typed and erased. Nothing was right. What could he say that might make Hide feel better?

To Hide

_Your work’s no good to a dead man._

He sent it; his grip so tight he thought he’d break his phone. It didn’t relax until he saw Hide’s reply back.

From Hide

_(~w~)/ g’night!_

To Hide

_Good night_

Letting out the breath he had been holding, Kaneki put his cellphone away and went to get dressed. As he put on his suit, he thought on how hard Hide worked to make this for him, so Kaneki didn’t end up dead in the street. The least he could do was not die tonight.

_‘I still owe him lunch.’_

That was Kaneki’s last thought on the subject as he put on his mask.

Centipede exited his apartment, wondering where he would go. He hadn’t heard of anything that would be happening tonight, so he’d probably just be patrolling.

As he landed on a roof, he heard a sound behind him and quickly shot his kagune towards the source. Whatever it was dodged before landing in front of him. He pulled his kagune back, glaring at the familiar masked figure.

“Stalking me, Glutton?”

Putting her cellphone away, Glutton smirked at him. “Love the hood. Makes you look scary.”

Centipede cracked his knuckles as his kagune raised up to strike. There was no one else to fight. Arima wasn’t here to stop him. He could finally settle this.

**_‘End her!’_ **

Glutton must have sensed his bloodlust because she lowered herself into a fighting stance. “Oh? Are we getting serious?” Glutton asked, licking her fangs.

Centipede transformed his kagune into a claw, launching it at her. Glutton lunged with her mouth opened wide, ready to take a bite if he missed his target.

Before either made contact, a loud scream pierced the air and was quickly followed by many more. Centipede skidded to a stop, focusing on that direction.

“Not gonna play anymore?”

Refusing to acknowledge her taunting, Centipede jumped onto the street and made his way to the source of the screaming. He stopped, eyes going wide when he saw what was making everyone run away in terror.

Some strange and horrifying goop monster was currently making its way through the city.

_‘Oh, that’s not good.’_

“Sparky! Stop!”

Centipede watched as a woman in a lab coat ran after the gelatinous mass, waving some strange metal box around.

He went to the woman, asking, “What is that thing?”

The woman screamed, using her arms to hide her head. “Please don’t hurt me! I’m sorry! It was an accident!”

“Calm down. I just want to know what that monster is.”

“He’s not a monster!” she argued. The monster let out a loud roar before it ate a nearby car, absorbing it into its mass. Centipede’s gaze narrowed at the woman who lowered her head in shame. “He’s…not usually a monster.”

“Explain. Fast,” he ordered.

“Sparky’s an experiment my team and I have been working on. A sort of new way to recycle matter. He’s usually a lot tinier but he got out of his bottle and grew big and now I need to put him back. Please help me!”

Centipede rolled his eyes, asking, “And how do we do that?”

The woman presented the box that she had been waving around. “Put this on Sparky’s head and press the green button. He’ll get absorbed into it. And don’t worry. He’s been modified to not digest living tissue.”

“Great.”

Centipede ran towards ‘Sparky’, running up the side of the building until he was above it. As he went to jump on its head, Sparky turned around and smacked him into the side of the building. Centipede tumbled to the ground, still holding tight to the box.

“Sparky, no!”

Centipede looked up and saw Sparky about to slam one of its appendages down on him. Just as Centipede forced himself to his feet, Glutton came from the side and ripped the appendage off with her teeth. Sparky roared though it didn’t seem as if it caused any lasting damage.

Glutton spat out what she had taken a bite of, wiping her mouth in disgust.

“Horrible.”

“Glutton? Why…?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be stopping this thing? Hurry now, Centipede~!”

Glutton ran off, doing her part to distract Sparky. Right, now wasn’t the time to question whatever she was doing. Sparky was the main concern.

Centipede vaulted up Sparky’s back then slammed the box down on its head before switching it on. Jumping down to the ground, Centipede watched as the metal box lit up before sucking Sparky inside of it like a vacuum.

Once Sparky was inside, the box fell to the ground and the woman caught it in her arms.

“Oh, Sparky! You’re safe!” she cried, hugging the box.

“Why should we let you take that?” Centipede asked, wanting to break that box and the monster inside it.

The woman held the box closer. “No, please. We’ve been working on Sparky for five years. This is the first time he’s escaped. One more chance, please!”

Centipede just stared at her before he sighed. “Go before I change my mind.”

Her face lit up before she bowed and ran off. Glutton sauntered over to Centipede, chuckling.

“My, my, you’ve grown soft.”

“Why did you save me?” Centipede growled. "That interested in finishing our fight?"

Glutton let out a sigh as she took out her cellphone, typing something on it. “My dear Centipede, I can’t mess with you if you’re dead.” She finished whatever she was doing then pocked her phone, smirking at him. “Make sure to check your phone when you get back. Tsukiyama’s curious where you got your hood.”

“…I hate you.”

Glutton just replied with a disparaging laugh as she hopped onto a nearby roof and disappeared into the darkness, leaving Centipede alone with no desire to return home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me to me: "Is there an actual plot to this story?"  
> Me to me: "...I dunno..."


	4. Chapter 4

_“World-renowned fashion designer Shuu Tsukiyama has left the International Fashion Consult Design Show early. When asked why, he simply stated he had something far more important than a silly fashion show. One can only wonder what would be so imperative to the designer.”_

Centipede shook his head as he watched the news report on the giant screen. He didn’t have to wonder because Tsukiyama made it perfectly clear to Centipede that he was coming back to the city.

 _“I never should have left when you obviously needed my assistance! Mon dieu! You had to rely on some second-class designer and I shall never allow that again!”_ were a few of the many words he relayed in his voicemails over the last few days.

Centipede hadn’t responded to any of them. He couldn’t think on how to tell Tsukiyama that he liked the outfit Hide had given him and Tsukiyama had no right to insult the other man’s hard work. If that’s what Hide's had been told, it was no wonder he had issues with the man.

He’d worry about that later because Centipede finally saw his target. A man in a dark suit made his way through the alleyway, trying his best to stay hidden. Centipede was mainly focused on the briefcase he was holding. Some kind of new drug from what his sources had told him.

He shot his kagune towards the man, wrapping one around his leg and bringing the man to the ground. Another kagune grabbed the briefcase as it flew from the man’s hands.

Centipede landed in front of the man and bent down. “Where did you get this?” he growled. The man didn’t respond so Centipede tightened his kagune’s grip until he heard something snap as the man screamed bloody murder. “Let’s try that again.”

Soon, Centipede had as much information as he could get from the man. He was a grunt so he didn’t know much but he was able to give Centipede someone a little higher up on the ladder: Mr. Zen. Centipede dropped off the briefcase to authorities, thinking on how to best handle going after the dealer.

As he exited the station, someone blocked him off and put a microphone into his face.

“Centipede! A moment of your time?”

Centipede pushed past him, muttering a curt “No.”

The reporter didn’t seem deterred as he followed closely, firing off a list of questions at rapid pace. “Do you think more superpowered individuals should be vigilantes? Why are you one? Why a centipede? Is it because there are already spider heroes? Where did you get the creepy mask? Where—”

“Centipede!” The two stopped as Bloodwing descended from the air. “I require your assistance. Please follow me.”

Centipede glanced at the reporter who looked ecstatic by the chance to interview the famous hero.

“Of course, Bloodwing.”

“Ah, wait, Bl—”

Bloodwing quickly grabbed Centipede’s hand and flew into the sky. They came down onto a roof and Bloodwing spat out, “Reporters are fucking leeches.”

“Thanks for the save.”

“Didn’t do it for you. I actually need your help. Hinami passed her Hero’s License Exam.” Centipede smiled hearing that. It was good to know that Hinami was doing well. She was going to make an amazing hero. Bloodwing continued, “She wants to go get some rough drafts for a suit Saturday but I already promised to do a charity event so I need you to set it up.”

Centipede grimaced when he realized what that meant. He was going to have to talk to Tsukiyama sooner than he wanted to.

“I don’t know if I can get him to work on such short notice.” Tsukiyama had just arrived back in the city from a fashion show. He probably didn’t want to design something.

Bloodwing scoffed. “Oh, please. He likes you. He’ll be thrilled.”

“Also, things are a bit awkward between us,” Centipede admitted, scratching the back of his head.

“What did you do?”

Centipede felt insulted by the accusation. “Why do you think _I_ did something?”

“Because I know you, dumbass. You do stupid shit.” Opening his mouth to argue that, Bloodwing held up her hand to silence him. “I don’t want to hear it. Whatever the problem is, fix it so Hinami gets her suit.”

Centipede let out a sigh, realizing he wasn’t going to get out of this one. “Fine.” As Bloodwing got ready to take off, Centipede asked, “Can you help me on patrol this week?” Bloodwing glanced at him, waiting for him to elaborate. “Trying to find a drug dealer called Mr. Zen and I’d rather get that done as soon as possible.”

“That new synthetic?” Centipede nodded. “Alright. We’ll meet up here tomorrow and start searching.”

“I owe you.”

“This one’s on me,” Bloodwing insisted before she flew off into the sky.

Centipede silently thanked her, deciding to call it a night. He was going to need all of his strength when he called Tsukiyama.

…

…

…

The days until Saturday seemed to just blend together. Work, patrol, work, patrol. He and Touka hadn’t managed to find anything of interest yet but they wouldn’t stop searching.

But as he walked up to Anteiku, he knew now wasn’t the time to think on that. He smiled when he saw Hinami, leaning against the side of the café. When she saw him, she rushed towards him.

“Big brother!”

Hinami launched herself at Kaneki who did his best to stay upright. He chuckled as he ruffled her hair. She had gotten a bit taller since the last time he saw her.

“Hinami, how are you?”

Hinami let him go. “Great. I’m going to be the best he—” Kaneki put a finger to her lips.

“Secrets, Hinami.” It looked like he might have to go over certain basics again. But that was okay; Hinami was a great student.

She looked sheepish as Kaneki removed his finger. “Sorry. I got excited.

“I know, Hinami, and I’m excited for you too.” He fixed her hair, telling her, “I just want to make sure you’re safe.” If something happened to her, and he could have prevented it, he didn’t want to think about what he'd do.

He was wrapped up into another hug. “I’ll be safe. I promise.” When Hinami let go, she wagged her finger at him. “But you have to promise to hang out with me more.”

Kaneki sighed through his nose. Well…it wouldn’t hurt, right? Maybe she could even come on patrol with him and Touka.

“I promise.”

“Great!” Hinami grabbed his hand, waving it back and forth. “Let’s hurry! I have a bunch of ideas!”

“Our ride should be here soon.”

Just as he said that, some kind of brand-new luxury car pulled up in front of them. Kaneki opened the back-passenger door for Hinami who let out an ‘ooh’ as she climbed inside. Walking around to the other side, Kaneki took a seat next to Hinami.

“Good day, Mr. Kaneki.”

Kaneki looked at the man sitting in the driver’s seat. “Hello, Kanae. How are you?”

Kanae seemed surprised by the question. Understandable; Kaneki didn’t normally bother with pleasantries.

“I’m…well. Thank you for asking. Master Shuu is looking forward to seeing you,” Kanae said as he began driving.

Kaneki just ‘hmmed’ before looking at Hinami. The young girl was marveling at the expensive interior of the car.

He tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention. “Do you know what name you’ll use?”

Hinami puffed her chest out proudly. “I’m going to be Madame Butterfly after that story we used to read.”

He remembered. It wasn’t one he particularly cared for but Hinami seemed to enjoy it so he was happy to read it with her.

“That’s a beautiful name.” Hinami was obviously pleased by his approval. “Now, do you plan to use it when we see Tsukiyama?”

Hinami seemed shocked by the question. “Should I?”

Before, Kaneki would have said yes without hesitation. He had only given Tsukiyama his name because he knew the other man wasn’t loose lipped; that had taken close to a year. But he hadn’t exactly been following that lately so…

“If you feel comfortable telling him your name, you can. I trust your judgment.”

Hinami relaxed into her seat, thinking on the situation. “I’ll decide when we get there.”

“Alright.”

There was silence for a few minutes before Hinami asked, “Wait, who did you say we’re seeing?”

Kanae answered, probably happy about any chance to talk about his employer. “Master Shuu Tsukiyama, one of the greatest fashion designers known. He designs both heroes and civilians but still sees very few clients so you are quite lucky to be one.”

Hinami just blinked. “Oh…okay…”

“What’s wrong?” Kaneki asked. She didn’t seem as excited as before.

“Nothing. If this is where we’re going then I trust you,” Hinami told him before settling back into the ride.

Well, that wasn’t suspicious at all. He’d just have to keep an eye out in case something seemed wrong.

The rest of the car ride was uneventful (light chatter, lots of staring out the window) until they reached the large iron gates of Tsukiyama’s mansion. Hinami tried to roll down her window but Kanae stopped her.

“We have to wait until we’re past the gate.”

“Why?”

“The security system will try to eliminate you,” Kanae explained before he typed in the code that opened the gate.

Once she was able, Hinami opened the window and held her head out. Kaneki couldn’t blame her for being excited. The drive up to the mansion from the gates offered an amazing view of the numerous statues and fountains Tsukiyama had in his front yard. Maybe there would be time to show her the gardens in the back.

Kanae pulled into the garage and the three exited the vehicle. As Kanae led them down one of the hallways, Hinami pointed at each of the paintings they passed, asking Kanae about the history and meaning behind them. It looked like her desire to learn had grown even greater. Thankfully, Kanae seemed to enjoy Hinami’s curiosity and answered each of her questions to the best of his abilities.

The three came up to a large wooden door; Kaneki knew that behind it was Tsukiyama’s work room. “Master Shuu, I have brought Mr. Kaneki and Ms…” He paused, looking at Hinami.

She glanced at Kaneki who nodded. “Hinami.”

“Ms. Hinami.”

“Wonderful! Enter! Enter!”

Kanae opened the door and the three walked inside. Sitting in front of a large vanity was the familiar figure of Shuu Tsukiyama. He stood up, arms opened wide as he sauntered over to his guests.

“Kaneki, how I missed you!” He placed a hand on Kaneki’s shoulder, letting out a dramatic sigh. “You would not believe the people I had to deal with. If Kanae were not with me, I would not have been able to return to you when you clearly needed me.”

Kaneki shrugged the hand off. “Hello, Tsukiyama.” He gestured to Hinami who stared at Tsukiyama in a mix of awe and confusion. “Let’s focus on Hinami, shall we?”

“Yes, yes, of course.” He looked down at Hinami. “What a lovely little cherub you are. Turn for me.” Hinami did as she was asked and Tsukiyama observed her. “Magnifique. Now, what will be your alias and what are your abilities?”

“I’ll be Madame Butterfly and I can do this.”

Hinami took in a deep breath before a pair of beautiful pink butterfly wings appeared from her back. Kaneki took a step to the side to make sure he wouldn’t be struck by them. Tsukiyama’s eyes sparkled as he stared at Hinami’s wings.

“Oh! The inspiration has struck me!” Tsukiyama snapped his fingers and Kanae rushed to his side and gave him a pencil and sketchbook. He walked over to where he was sitting before and gestured to the seats across from him. “Come. Sit, sit.”

Hinami took the seat near Tsukiyama and when Tsukiyama saw that Kaneki hadn’t moved, he signaled for him to come forward.

“Come closer, Kaneki. It’s been too long, after all.”

Kaneki opened his mouth ( _‘I’m not interested.’_ ) but was cut off by his cellphone ringing. He took his phone out of his pocket and cursed softly when he saw Hide’s name lit up the screen. He walked over to Hinami, patting her gently on the head.

“I’m going to make a call real quick. Will you be okay?”

“I’ll be fine. Is it big sister?” she asked, trying to look at his phone.

Kaneki made sure to keep his phone hidden. “No, no. It’s just a friend. I’ll be back.” Hinami nodded and Kaneki glared at Tsukiyama. “Don’t try anything.”

“I would never.”

Kaneki ignored him as he stepped out into the hallway, walking a bit so he had some privacy before he called Hide.

There was a small click. “Hello, you’ve reached the fantastic and fabulous Hide. Who may I ask is calling?”

Kaneki chuckled at the snooty accent Hide had decided to go with. “This would be Kaneki, returning a call I believe was made.”

“Hmm…Kaneki, Kaneki. Ah, yes. A call was made to find out your estimated time of arrival to Rabbits and Ribbons.”

“Huh?” Wait, was that part of the joke?

“When will you arrive with dear Hinami?”

Kaneki stood up straight, as if he had been electrocuted. “Um…what?”

Hide stopped the accent. “You’re spacy today. Touka said you were bringing Hinami over so I could work on her suit!”

Hide started talking about something else but Kaneki wasn’t listening because the realization finally set in, like a lead brick into his stomach. Touka had wanted him to take Hinami to Hide’s. He was in the wrong place and Hide…Hide was going to be mad at him when he found out, wasn’t he?

“Kaneki!” Kaneki finally came to when he heard the loud cry of his name over the phone. “You okay over there?”

“Hide…I…”

Kaneki bit his lip, not sure what to say. It wasn’t that big of a deal, right? Just a simple mistake. Hide would understand if Kaneki explained.

But what if he got mad? What if he didn’t want to work with Kaneki anymore? Didn’t want to talk to him? Didn’t…didn’t want to be friends anymore?

“…I…took Hinami to…”

_‘Just tell him. Explain yourself.’_

**_‘You chose Tsukiyama over Hide. How do you explain that?’_ **

_‘It was a mix-up. Hide’s nice. He’ll understand.’_

**_‘And if he doesn’t? Do you really want to lose this because you were a fool?’_ **

“…to…the park…” Kaneki cursed himself for his weakness but he was committing to this. “I haven’t seen her in so long so I…I took her out for fun and…forgot.”

Kaneki felt the guilt gnaw at him when Hide said, “Aww~! That’s sweet of you! Well, then you want to set a time for next Saturday?”

“Hold on a moment.” Kaneki walked back to the room where the others were before he beckoned Hinami to follow him. When they were out in the hall, Kaneki asked, “Hinami, can you come with me to meet a friend next Saturday?”

Hinami raised an eyebrow, obviously confused by the strange request, but she still smiled.

“Sure. That sounds fun.”

“Great. Thanks.” Kaneki put his phone back up to his ear. “She’s free. We’ll see you next Saturday, Hide.”

“Sounds good! Don't stand me up this time!”

Hide hung up first and Kaneki pinched the bridge of his nose. That was one situation out of the way, he supposed.

“We’re going to see Hide?”

Kaneki nodded before he realized the question. He stared at Hinami, asking, “You know Hide?”

“I haven’t met him but big sister said that was where we were going today.”

“Wha…why didn’t you say that?”

Hinami shrugged. “I figured there was a reason you took me here instead.”

 _‘Yeah, I’m an idiot.’_ Kaneki massaged his temples before he placed his hands together in prayer. “Hinami, do me a favor and don’t tell Hide we came here instead, okay?”

Hinami didn’t say anything for a while but her deepening frown showed her displeasure. “Big brother, are you asking me to lie?”

“Not lie. Just…” He waved his hands around, trying to find the right words. “…omit.”

“Big brother, you shouldn’t lie to your friends! If you made a mistake, you need to talk about it!”

Kaneki couldn’t argue as Hinami lectured him. How was he the older one but she was clearly more mature?

“I know, Hinami but…” Kaneki didn’t know what to say. Hinami just didn’t understand the issue here. “…but just this once?”

Hinami just scowled at him before she nodded. “I won’t tell him.”

Kaneki wrapped an arm around her shoulders, bringing her in close. “You’re the best, Hinami.”

He heard her whisper, “Don’t say that yet.”

Before he could ask what that meant, Hinami escaped his hold and ran back to the fitting room; Kaneki slowly followed behind.

When the two returned, Tsukiyama directed them to a table where an array of white fabrics were. “Alright, young mademoiselle. Now, any allergies?” Hinami shook her head. “Excellent. Then we should be able to use any of these fabrics. They’re heavy-duty and will help protect you. Just pick the one you feel is most you.”

Hinami looked at the selection before turning to Kaneki. “What’s your suit made of?”

“High-quality mechamesh.” He heard Tsukiyama sob and asked, “What?”

Tsukiyama dabbed at his eyes with a handkerchief, smiling brightly. “All this time, you really were listening to what I had to say.”

Kaneki just stared at him. “…Right…” He didn’t need to know.

“Then I want whichever one that is,” Hinami decided.

“A wonderful choice.” Tsukiyama grabbed one of the bolts of fabric and walked off. “You are my first priority so it should be done in the next couple of days.” Hinami clapped her hands together in excitement. Tsukiyama placed the fabric down on a sewing table and turned to the two with pleading eyes. “Won’t you two stay for a while as I work? It gets ever so lonely.”

“Can we?” Hinami asked. Kaneki groaned and Hinami pouted. “Please? I want to see what a top designer does.”

He stared at Hinami before he sighed. “We leave at five.”

“Magnifique!” Tsukiyama cried out as he waved at Kanae. “Kanae, get something for our guests to eat! Oh, and that new tea we purchased!”

“Of course, Master Shuu.”

Kaneki already regretted his decision but Hinami was happy. That was important, right?

The two stayed for several hours as Tsukiyama worked. Hinami asked as much as she could about the costume-making process (“Who makes the fabric?” “How do they make it?” “What kind of scissors are able to cut it?”). Tsukiyama did his best to answer her questions while also trying to get Kaneki to engage with him. Kaneki was perfectly content sitting in the corner and nibbling on the small sandwiches Kanae made.

Much longer than he would have liked, 5’o clock finally arrived.

“Alright, Hinami. Time to go.” Hinami pouted again but Kaneki wasn’t having it. “I have to get you back to Anteiku and get ready for patrol.”

“Okay.” Hinami got out of her chair then bowed to Tsukiyama. “Thank you for your time.”

Tsukiyama put on his most flattering smile. “Of course. I will call Kaneki when your suit is ready.”

“I’ll drive you both back,” Kanae said as he walked to the door.

“Ah, before that, Kaneki, may I speak with you alone?” Kaneki just looked at him over his shoulder; Tsukiyama held up one finger. “Just a moment.”

“Fine.” Kaneki gave Hinami a pat on the head. “You head to the car. I’ll be right there.”

“Okay, big brother.”

Once Kanae and Hinami were out of the room, Kaneki turned fully to Tsukiyama. “What?”

Tsukiyama stood up and walked towards Kaneki. “Kaneki, I simply want to apologize again for leaving you when you needed me.”

“I was fine,” Kaneki insisted.

“But you were forced to wear that garish design.”

“I like the cloak.”

Tsukiyama looked surprised by the statement. “Pardon?”

“I like the cloak and I don’t want to hear you insulting it.”

“B…but…” Tsukiyama blinked a few times before he laughed. “Well, why didn’t you tell me?” Kaneki just looked at him, doubtful of this new turn around. “I will gladly make you one. All you had to do was ask.”

“I don’t want you to. I like the one I have.”

Kaneki could see a small vein appear near Tsukiyama’s eye as he tried to keep his smile up. “Now, you wouldn’t be bothering me. It is my honor to do so.”

“I don’t want it. I’m going now,” Kaneki told him, ready to leave.

“So…it’s true?” Kaneki paused and waited for Tsukiyama to finish. The man looked like he wanted to strangle Kaneki but also cry into his shoulder. “Rize… ** _that witch_** …she told me that you no longer needed me. Is…is that true?”

Kaneki sighed. “…I appreciate the work you’ve done. It’s why I brought Hinami here and if necessary, I would ask you to make me another suit…”

Tsukiyama smiled brightly, shaking Kaneki’s hand. “Oh, I knew you—”. Kaneki took his hand back.

“…but right now, I want to keep working with the person who made my cloak.”

“But…but why?” Tsukiyama asked, looking like a kicked puppy.

“I don’t know what to tell you,” Kaneki said, his hands going up in exasperation. “I appreciate your work. I thank you for your help but unless he’s not around, I will work with this new designer because I like him.”

Tsukiyama’s eyes went wide. “You…you like him?” He said it as if the words were foreign to him.

“Yes, I do,” Kaneki asserted.

Tsukiyama looked positively stunned by the claim. “So…I lose.” Kaneki wasn’t sure what that meant and Tsukiyama didn’t seem interested in explaining as he walked back to his work table. “Fine. Go to your second-rate designer but know that when you remember how superior my work is, I will gladly await you.”

Kaneki just stared at his retreating back. “Alright then…” was all he said before he left the room.

He made his way down the hallway to the garage where Hinami and Kanae were waiting. As they all got inside the car, Hinami asked, “What did you two talk about?”

“Just about some new additions to my suit,” Kaneki lied, rubbing at his chin. He didn’t miss the knowing glance Kanae gave him in the rearview mirror.

The entire ride to Anteiku, Kaneki gave Hinami a few pointers for starting her new hero journey: how to find out where to patrol, getting a second cellphone, making sure to get her rest especially if she was injured.

She didn’t need to know he didn’t really do the last one.

Once they arrived at Anteiku, they bid Kanae farewell and before Hinami could walk inside, Kaneki grabbed her by the shoulder.

“Ah, Hinami, one more thing. Don’t tell Touka that we went to Tsukiyama’s.” Hinami frowned from the request. “I don’t want her to yell at me and you know she will at yell me.”

Hinami nodded at that. “Yeah, she will,” Hinami said as she walked inside.

Kaneki panicked a bit when she didn’t agree. He watched as she walked right over to Touka, greeting her with a hug and talking to her. He didn’t see any terrifying change in Touka’s expression. He jumped a little when Touka looked at him through the window but calmed down when all she did was give a wave. Hinami gave him one as well.

He returned the wave before he headed back to his apartment, feeling completely wiped. Maybe he should practice what he preaches and take a small rest. He and Touka could patrol tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There was going to be more to this chapter but then it felt like it was dragging, so that part will be in the next chapter. There will be more Hide next chapter and hopefully more actual superhero-ing.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter made me realize I never actually said what Kaneki or Touka look like in their superhero outfits so brief summary.
> 
> Centipede: Basically exactly like his canon outfit, plus the cloak which I did describe so yay me!
> 
> Bloodwing: Red bodysuit with black sleeves, emblem of red bird wings on the chest, black boots, red mask with feathers (kinda like those mardi gras masks), hair up in a ponytail
> 
> I think that's it. Okay, have fun!

“Wow! It looks so cute!”

Kaneki chuckled as he stared at the storefront of Rabbits and Ribbons. That was one word for it.

Kaneki was looking forward to this respite. While he had managed to get some information on where to find this Mr. Zen, he didn’t want to think about that right now. He wanted to enjoy the time he could spend with Hinami and Hide.

Kaneki stopped Hinami from walking in. “Remember, if Hide asks, we went to the park. We’re not telling him where we were last week.”

“ _I_ won’t tell him…” Hinami corrected, pointing a finger at him. “…because _you_ will.”

_'Why would I do that?’_

Hinami must have read his mind because she smirked. “If you don’t, I’ll tell big sister.”

Kaneki looked at her, horrified. No, that couldn't happen. Touka would absolutely tell Hide which meant not only would Hide never forgive him but then Touka would also never let him live this down.

“You promised…” was all Kaneki could say.

“Not to tell Hide. I said nothing about big sister.”

Kaneki tried glaring at her but he knew it held no weight. “When did you get so crafty?”

Hinami smiled sweetly. “It’ll be okay,” she said. She opened the door and the two walked inside, the bell above signaling their arrival.

“One sec!” Hide called from the back.

Hinami didn’t seem to mind waiting as she looked around at all of the different clothes.

“How pretty!”

Kaneki smiled, happy Hinami was enjoying herself. “You want to try some on?”

Hinami nodded, grabbing a dress and heading to the public dressing room. As she started to get changed, Hide came from the back with his ever-present smile.

“Hey, Neki!” He looked around the store. “Where’s Hinami?”

“Trying on one of your dresses.”

“One sec!” Hinami shouted.

Hide just laughed. “No rush.” He focused on Kaneki. “How was the park?”

Kaneki felt like he had been punched by the reminder. He looked at the dressing room before he rubbed his chin, chuckling, “It was a lot of fun. Got some ice cream.”

Hide leaned against a display, sighing dramatically. “I’m glad. I was left all alone here. No fun. No ice cream. Just me.”

“Um…I’ll bring you ice cream?” Kaneki offered.

Hide seemed to mull over the offer before he nodded. “Strawberry.” He held up two fingers. “Double scoop.”

“Noted.”

The dressing room door opened and Hinami came skipping out in a pastel-colored plaid dress.

“How do I look?” she asked, giving a twirl.

Hide responded first. “You’re so cute! Here!” Hide grabbed a white sunhat then placed it on Hinami’s head. He held his fingers together as if he was taking a picture. “Perfect! You have to keep it!”

Hinami’s smile fell. “I left my wallet at home.”

Kaneki cut off whatever Hide was about to say. “ _I’ll_ pay.” He looked at Hide, pointing a finger at him. “I’m paying for it.” He refused to take another freebie from Hide.

Hide rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t going to give it for free.” Kaneki raised an eyebrow, hoping his skepticism was obvious. “I _do_ care about making some kind of profit, Neki. I was going to put it on a tab.”

“I’m paying it now,” Kaneki insisted.

Hide shook his head before turning to Hinami. “We’ll worry about that later. Touka told me you’re getting your very first hero costume.”

“Yep, I’m going to be Madame Butterfly,” Hinami told him, striking a pose.

“Love it. Well, come on back and let’s see what we’re working with.”

Hide went to the backroom and before Kaneki could follow him, Hinami grabbed his hand and whispered, “’Neki?’”

Kaneki knew his face was bright red from how warm it felt. “I…he…that’s not…” Hinami just kept smirking and he grumbled to himself before pulling her into the backroom.

“Alright, what can you do?”

Hinami reached behind her, unzipping the back zipper on the dress before she let her wings appear. Hide stood behind her, analyzing the two appendages.

“Kinda like Touka, huh?”

Hinami nodded happily. “Yeah! Can you make me something that looks like her outfit?”

“I can make a similar design but you’ll probably want something different color-wise,” Hide explained. Hinami frowned and Hide just ruffled her hair. “Sorry but her red wings and your pink ones kinda clash.”

Hinami just stuck out her tongue. “Poo.”

“Come on. Touka wouldn’t want you here if she thought I wouldn’t make you look good.”

As Kaneki stood on the sidelines, he couldn’t help but smile at how naturally the two of them were able to talk with each other. It was like the room just filled with warmth thanks to their energy. It would be great to have this more often.

“Now, do you know how to tell the CHC who your designer is?” Hide asked. When Hinami shook her head, Hide wrote something down on a sticky note and handed it to her. “This is my ID number and name. Give it to them and they’ll take care of the rest.”

Hinami looked down at the sticky note. “Scarecrow? Why are you called that?”

Hide scratched his cheek. “Ah, it’s an old nickname from when I was a kid.” Hinami motioned for him to continue. “My dads took me to a field and there was a scarecrow and they said that my hair looked like the straw on its head so they called me a little scarecrow,” Hide explained.

As Hinami talked about how cute that story was, Kaneki stared at Hide’s hair and took in the bright yellow color. He could understand how someone would see straw but…

“You look like a sunflower to me.”

Two pairs of eyes were suddenly focused on Kaneki who clamped his mouth shut once he realized he had said that out loud. Hinami’s eyes sparkled with mirth as she covered her mouth, giggling into her hands. When he turned to Hide, the other man quickly hid in his sketchbook, cheeks pink.

“I-I’m…going outside,” Kaneki muttered before turning around and walking out.

Hinami waved him off. “Don’t stay out too long!”

Once Kaneki was outside, he slumped against the wall with a loud groan. Why was he like this? It honestly wasn’t fair how easily he was able to relax when he was around Hide.

**_‘And you’re going to lose that.’_ **

He covered his face with his hands, wanting to crawl into a hole and disappear. He couldn’t do this. There had to be some way to convince Hinami. Was he above begging? At this point, he didn’t think so.

He sat outside for who knows how long, thinking on his problem, but finding nothing that would actually help. Deciding the embarrassment had died down a bit, he walked back into the store...just in time for Hinami to run out of the backroom and call out for him. She grabbed his hand and began to pull him towards the backroom.

“Hurry! You have to hurry! Something’s wrong with Hide!”

Kaneki let Hinami lead him towards Hide, wondering what could have happened in the short time he was outside. When they entered the room, Kaneki saw Hide sitting in his chair, eyes vacant.

Kaneki let out a breath of relief, giving Hinami’s shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Hinami, he’s fine. He’s just having a vision.”

Hinami looked at Hide then back at Kaneki. “A vision?”

“Yes. He has premonition so when he does that, he’s in a trance.” Kaneki walked over to Hide and snapped his fingers in front of his face. There was no response. “He’ll be back to normal soon.”

A few seconds later, Hide blinked. “Huh?”

“There he is.”

“Hide!” Hinami launched herself at Hide, hugging him tightly. “You didn’t tell me!”

Hide patted her on the head. “What? What didn’t I tell you?”

“You didn’t tell me that you have visions! I thought you were hurt!”

“You might want to put up a sign,” Kaneki proposed, thinking on his first time seeing Hide’s trance-like state.

“I guess so. Sorry about that, Hinami. Forgive me?”

Hinami was still clinging to Hide. “Yeah. What was the vision?”

“Nothing really important. My premonition’s pretty lame.”

“So you scared me for nothing?” she asked, pouting at him.

“Aww, don’t be like that. Next time, I have a really cool vision, I’ll tell you about it.” He held up his pinky. “Promise.”

Hinami smiled, linking her pinky with his. “Okay.”

“Great. Now, back to important things.” He held up his sketchbook “Ready to talk fabrics?”

Hinami looked apologetic. “Actually, I need to grab my dress from the changing room then head out…” She gave Kaneki a knowing look. “…but I’m sure big brother would like to talk to you.”

Kaneki glared at Hinami who gave him a thumbs up before she walked out of the backroom.

“You wanted to talk?”

Kaneki tried to focus on anything but Hide, muttering, “Not really…”

“…Does it have something to do with Touka saying things are weird between us?” Kaneki looked at Hide, letting out a confused ‘huh’. “When Touka called last week, she told me not to hold whatever you did against Hinami. _I_ don’t know what she’s talking about. Do you?”

Kaneki’s shoulders sank when he realized there really was no way to get out of this one.

_'This was nice while it lasted.'_

“I…I made a mistake,” Kaneki admitted. Hide didn’t say anything, just waited for him to continue. Kaneki rubbed his arm, confessing, “Last week…Hinami and I didn’t go to the park. We…went to Tsukiyama’s…to get Hinami a suit.”

Hide’s expression went blank. “Oh but…” Hide’s eyes darted around like he didn’t know what to say first. “…why did you lie?”

“I was worried…” Kaneki lowered his head. “…you’d be mad at me.” Wow, that sounded even more pitiful out loud.

“Why would I be mad at you?” Hide wondered before clarifying. “I mean, I _am_ mad but that’s because you lied.”

That was fair. “Because I went to Tsukiyama.”

Hide frowned, obviously upset by the answer, and Kaneki hated that it was his fault.

“Kaneki, I don’t want to be why you don’t work with other people. If you want to work with Tsukiyama—” Kaneki cut him off.

“But I want to work with you.” _‘I want to keep seeing you.’_

Hide scoffed, “I don’t want your pity.”

“It’s not pity!” he shouted, shocking both of them. Kaneki calmed down but he was still irritated that Hide thought that was the only reason Kaneki wanted to work with him. “It’s not. I like you—your work,” he tacked on.

Hide didn’t look convinced, arms crossed as he refused to look at Kaneki. Kaneki felt his chest tighten up, not sure what else he could say.

“I mean it. I made sure to tell Tsukiyama that.”

That seemed to get Hide’s interest; he glanced at Kaneki. “You did?”

Kaneki felt a small bit of hope flicker. “I did. I said I liked the cloak you made and when he offered to make one, I told him I wanted to keep working with you.”

A smile made its way to Hide’s lips but it quickly fell. “Were you just going to have me make Hinami a suit she probably wasn’t gonna wear?”

The hope died. “I…I didn’t think that far.”

“No duh.”

“I’m...I'm sorry,” Kaneki muttered, head low so he didn’t have to look at Hide’s reaction.

Hide sighed in frustration. “I just…ugh…”

The bell over the front door rang and several chattering voices entered the store.

“I’ll be right there!” Hide called out. “Kaneki…” Kaneki shut his eyes tight, bracing himself. “…just…make sure this is what you want, okay?”

Kaneki opened his eyes and regretted it when he saw the melancholy smile on Hide’s face.

“But…”

Hide held up his hand. “I want you to think about it so next time if something like this happens, you won’t feel like you need to lie.”

Kaneki couldn’t say anything to that so he just nodded. Hide gave him a pat on the shoulder before he walked out to greet his new customers. Kaneki stood there and replayed the interaction over in his mind, wondering if he could have said anything that wouldn’t have made Hide mad at him. Nothing came, no matter how long he stood there.

He should probably leave. He didn’t want to make more trouble.

Kaneki took in a deep breath to steel himself, determined to leave with some pride still intact. He glanced in the mirror and when he saw an icy stare back, he walked out of the room.

He ignored the stares on him, refused to look at Hide (worried his front would break), and walked out the front door.

Once he was outside, he saw Hinami waiting by the window. She flashed him a hopeful smile but he didn’t return it and started walking down the road so they wouldn’t cause a scene in front of the store.

He heard Hinami follow him and ask, “It didn’t go well?”

That was putting it mildly. “It didn’t,” he said, hoping he didn’t sound as frustrated as he felt.

“I’m sorry, big brother.”

Kaneki stopped walking, turning around to see Hinami with her head low as she twisted the hem of her dress between her hands.

**_‘If she had kept her mouth shut then this wouldn’t have happened. She—‘_ **

_‘No!_ ’

No, he wasn’t going to do that. He wasn’t going to blame Hinami for his mistakes. It wasn’t her fault he messed up.

Kaneki walked up to her and brought her in for a one-armed hug. “Don’t apologize. You didn’t do anything wrong,” he told her.

Hinami wrapped her arms around him. “I just…I didn’t think it was a good thing to lie to him.”

“He told me he was angry that I lied so you were right.”

She looked up at him. “He’ll forgive you. He’s nice.” Kaneki just stroked her hair, not really believing that. “He told me he thinks you’re nice too.”

Kaneki pulled away, surprised. “He…he did?”

“Yep. He said you were one of the nicest people he's ever worked with,” Hinami told him, nodding happily.

“When did he say that?”

“When you walked out after calling him a sunflower.”

Kaneki covered his face with his hand, having nearly forgotten that embarrassing moment. “Right.” Sighing, Kaneki finally let Hinami go. “I don’t think he thinks that anymore.”

Hinami just blinked. “…Did he say he didn’t forgive you?”

“No…” Kaneki said, knowing where she was going with her questions.

“Did he say to never talk to him again?”

“No but…”

“Then give him some time and try again. I’m sure it’ll be okay. He likes you.”

Kaneki knew Hinami didn’t mean anything deep by that but his cheeks still went warm when he heard that Hide liked him.

Maybe she was right. “When did you get so smart?” he asked, allowing himself to smile.

“I had a good teacher.” The two begin walking again and Hinami asked, “So where are we going now?”

Kaneki thought on it for a second. “Well, I did say we went to get ice cream. I can at least be honest about that much.”

The cheer Hinami let out did make him feel better.

…

…

…

“So, what does it look like?”

“She made sure to kick me out so I couldn’t see.”

Bloodwing was obviously impatient as they waited for Madame Butterfly. “If he put her in something stupid, I’ll kick his ass.”

Centipede kept his mouth shut but he knew at some point, he would probably have to tell her, especially if Tsukiyama made something she didn’t like. And it wasn’t like telling her now would make the situation any worse, right?

“Ta-da!”

The two looked up to the sky and watched as someone landed in front of them. She was wearing a white bodysuit with pink accents decorating it like the lines of her wings, pink ruffles were attached at the waist, neckline, and wrists. Her dark pink boots matched the mask that covered her eyes and the large butterfly in her hair.

She held out her arms, declaring, “Madame Butterfly has arrived!”

Centipede gave her a few claps as Bloodwing circled around.

“Not what I would have chosen but you look good.”

“Thanks, big sister!”

“Names,” Centipede reminded her.

“I mean, thanks, Bloodwing. So, what are we doing tonight?”

Bloodwing stopped circling, telling her, “It’s your first night so we’re going to start off small. You and I are going to do a patrol and see what we find in the sky.”

“Huh?” Madame Butterfly looked over at Centipede, confusion evident. “Aren’t you coming, b—Centipede?”

Centipede shook his head. “It’s best if you work with Bloodwing since she’s a licensed hero.” Her disappointment was obvious.

Bloodwing nudged her with her elbow. “Come on. He had all day with you. Besides…” She spread her wings then took off into the sky, shouting, “…it’s not like he could keep up with us!”

Madame Butterfly stared up at Bloodwing and smiled. Waving to Centipede, she flapped her wings and followed the other superhero.

Centipede watched as they disappeared into the night sky, silently wishing them luck.

It looked like he was on his own tonight. While he was used to it, he had been having fun patrolling with Bloodwing lately. Maybe when Madame Butterfly gets used to the routine, they could all patrol together.

But now wasn’t the time for that. Centipede focused on the large building across the street. He had heard Zen spent a lot of time at the high-end nightclub, Glamour. Apparently, he had a private room in there that he used to conduct most of his business.

Unfortunately, it was one of those need-to-know places. He took note of the well-dressed couple that walked up to the front door. He recognized one of them from a recent news report, some starlet whose penthouse had been broken into.

While he could probably break in, it was risky. A place like that was definitely brimming with security and if he got caught, Zen would be in the wind and Centipede would have nothing. He had to find the most discrete way into that club but how?

As he continued to watch people enter, each wearing some fancy and expensive outfit, he thought how they reminded him of Tsukiyama.

_‘No…’_

Centipede groaned into his hands when he realized that Tsukiyama would definitely be able to get inside the club without an issue. But he couldn’t ask him for help after last week. That wasn’t even counting what would happen if Hide found out.

There had to be someone else. Who else did he know that might have any kind of pull?

Maybe Arima? He probably knew some authors who would be able to get him in. No, that was a violation of their company’s privacy policy and if he even tried to ask Arima about it, the other man would probably fire him.

Maybe…Rize? He shuddered at the thought but it was plausible, right? He didn’t know a lot about her past but he knew that she had enough pull to be in Tsukiyama’s circle (even if the man wanted nothing to do with her). She might be able to help.

Glaring at the nightclub, Centipede weighed his options. He could either ask Tsukiyama for help, knowing he would probably make Centipede beg. Or he could ask Rize for help, knowing she would definitely make him beg.

**_‘You can’t go to Tsukiyama. Who knows what he’ll want in exchange after what you did?’_ **

_‘You can’t go to Rize. She already makes your life difficult without trying to interact with her.’_

**_‘What if Hide finds out you went to Tsukiyama? He will never forgive you.’_ **

_‘You will owe Rize. Do you want to be forever indebted to that she-devil?’_

Centipede let out a defeated moan. He had terrible option A or terrible option B. That perfectly summed up his life.

_CRASH_

He turned to the alleyway, welcoming whatever the distraction was. Walking over the roof’s edge, Centipede watched as someone crawled out of a dumpster before taking a fighting stance. The simple bodysuit, mask and cape screamed rookie hero. Centipede looked at the other end of the alleyway where some musclebound brute started to stomp towards the other man.

“Why don’t you run on home, kid? Your Mama’s probably looking for you.”

The rookie didn’t take the bait and stayed silent. Centipede nodded in approval as he observed. The rookie took in a deep breath before his fists began glowing and he charged.

Before he could make contact, the larger man picked up a nearby pipe and swung it forward. The rookie stopped in surprise.

_‘Dodge it!’_

He didn’t and the pipe slammed him down into the concrete. Centipede pinched the bridge of his nose, not believing he made such a simple mistake.

_‘You used to be just like that though.’_

Centipede didn’t need the reminder of how weak he used to be.

The larger man laughed as he picked the rookie up by his cape. “Kid, just go home. Ya don’t gotta die for this.” The rookie stayed silent, launching his fist into the other man’s jaw. It didn’t do anything. “I offered.”

Centipede landed on the ground, wrapping a kagune around the muscular man’s neck. He slammed him into the wall and used another kagune to gently place the rookie hero on the ground.

“You made an offer. Here’s mine,” Centipede growled, his kagune wrapping tighter around the man’s neck. “You run – far and fast – and you live.”

He tossed the man to the end of the alleyway, glaring at him as he scrambled to get away. Centipede sighed before looking over at who he had saved. The rookie was back on his feet and when he saw Centipede looking at him, he bowed.

“Thank you for your help.”

Centipede just stared at him. “New to this?” The rookie didn’t say anything, head low. “Let me give you some advice I wish I had taken. Go find yourself a veteran hero to work with until you can stand on your own two feet.”

The rookie raised his head. “Um…ar—”

“Not me.”

He deflated at that. “W-well…you…already helped.”

“I’m a vigilante for a reason.” Centipede turned his back, waving the other off. “Go find someone at the…” He stared at Glamour, an idea forming. “…CHC.”

The CHC was probably the most powerful company in the city. Someone from there might be able to get him in. And he knew who he could ask…if Hide would forgive him.

Centipede nodded, cementing the idea before turning back to the rookie. “What’s your name?”

“Yu—I mean, Shockwave.” What was with these rookies not understanding something so simple?

“Alright, Shockwave. You just helped me figure out something so I’ll patrol with you tonight…” Shockwave smiled, gratefully. “…but tomorrow, get to the CHC and find someone else.”

“Yes, sir, Mr. Centipede!”

Centipede shook his head. It was going to be a long night.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys are amazing and I'm glad you like the story. :D

“Hide, I know you’re mad but…no, no. Hide, I didn’t mean to…to…ugh…”

It was late into the evening and Kaneki had just finished his day at Arima's company. Currently, he had been pacing in front of Rabbits and Ribbons for several minutes, thinking on what he could say. Each time he thought he had something, he remembered how hurt Hide looked and he knew it wasn’t enough. What was a good way to apologize, make sure Hide didn’t hate him, and ask him for help all in one sentence?

“Hide, I’m sorry but I need your help to…sigh…” He stopped pacing, not sure if he even had the courage to walk inside.

“So…”

Kaneki yelped, turning around. Hide was leaning against the wall, obviously amused by his little cry.

“…I was going to wait for you to come in on your own but you've been out here for like ten minutes so this is me telling you, you are free to come in."

Hide walked inside and Kaneki hesitated for a moment before he followed him. Once they were inside, Kaneki stayed silent and held out the bag in his hand. He felt his pulse race as he watched Hide take the bag and look inside. It only calmed down when he saw Hide smile.

“Ice cream?” he chuckled.

Kaneki blushed. “I…I said I’d bring you some.”

Hide laughed loudly and Kaneki felt so grateful. “Yeah, you did.” He put the bag down on the counter and took a seat. “Thanks.”

“Sure.” Kaneki pedaled his feet back and forth, nerves still high. “Um…I…” Apology first. “I’m sorry again.”

“…For?” Hide prodded.

“…For lying to you?” Kaneki let out a sigh of relief when Hide nodded.

“You’re forgiven.”

Kaneki smiled, standing up straight. Alright, maybe this won’t end badly. “And I still want to work with you.” That caused Hide to frown, muttering something to himself. Kaneki’s confidence evaporated. “If you want?” he added, praying that was what Hide wanted.

Hide shook his head. “I told you to think about it.”

“I did.” It wasn’t like it was a hard choice. “I’d like to work with you…please?”

“Why?” Hide didn’t ask it like he wanted Kaneki to tell him a reason. It was more like…he couldn’t believe Kaneki wanted to work with him.

Kaneki didn’t know what was happening. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“I saw Madame Butterfly on the news last night.” Kaneki swallowed hard. After Madame Butterfly and Bloodwing had stopped a bank robbery, the new hero had made her first introduction to the city. “That outfit was made by Tsukiyama, right?”

Kaneki hesitated before nodding; Hide sighed. “…It was really cute. Well-made too.”

“But you—”

Hide kept talking as if he didn’t hear Kaneki. “I’ve seen his portfolio. Tempest, The Hunter, Dragon King. He’s one of the best for a reason. People would kill to work with him and you’re…” Hide threw his arms up, as if the situation was too confusing for him to make sense of. “…you’re just throwing that away! For what?”

For what?

“For you. For this.”

Normally, Kaneki would have ran after saying something that foolish, that honest, but he couldn’t; not when Hide was looking at him like he was talking crazy.

“Hide, I don’t care what Tsukiyama is known for. I care about what you’ve done for me.”

Hide seemed to shrink into himself as he crossed his arms. He held his head down, refusing to look Kaneki in the eye. It felt so wrong seeing the usually outgoing man so uneasy.

“My suit wasn’t that impressive,” Hide mumbled.

“It’s not about the suit,” Kaneki insisted. “It’s about how you made me stay home so I’d be safe. How you spent your time making me a cloak I didn’t ask for. You sending me texts and pictures so I know you’re okay. You…” Kaneki stopped, thinking as fast as he could. There was more. What else? What else? “You making me happy.”

Hide flinched at that and Kaneki covered his face, trying to hide his burning cheeks. “I…I mean…” It wasn’t wrong but why did that have to be what came out?

“…Really?”

Kaneki took a risk and lowered his hands to gauge Hide’s reaction. Hide still wasn’t looking at him but he didn’t seem as closed off as before. He was rubbing his hands together, cheeks and ears pink.

Taking in a deep breath, Kaneki steadied himself. It was all or nothing. “I’ve felt better than I have in a long time and that’s because of you.” Kaneki bit his lower lip, knowing how selfish it was but he didn’t want to lose that. “Please let me keep working with you.”

The silence after his plea was deafening and it seemed to carry on forever until…

“Do you…” Hide finally looked at him before glancing at the ice cream that was still on the counter. “…want to come up for ice cream?”

It was amazing how light Kaneki felt as all of the stress in his body ebbed away. Nodding, Kaneki tried really hard not to tear up. It was only more difficult when Hide finally gave him another of those beautiful smiles.

After Hide put the closed sign up, the two made their way up to his apartment above the store.

When they entered, Kaneki looked around the living room. The floor was littered with papers and pieces of fabric. The small table next to the sofa was also covered in dirty dishes and trash. It was obvious that even when Hide closed the store for the day, he continued to work hard into the night. It wasn’t anything like Kaneki’s apartment that all but looked abandoned.

Hide scratched his cheek, embarrassed. “Sorry about the mess.”

“Don’t be. I like it.” It was homey; it felt nice.

“Just…here.” Hide walked over to the couch and waved the cushion around to clean it before he put it back. “Have a seat.”

Kaneki did as he was told, taking a seat on the couch. Hide was frantically glancing around the room, probably not sure what to do first.

“Um…so…” Hide gestured to the small flat screen near the wall. “Feel free to watch TV and I’ll get some bowls.”

“Do you want help?”

Hide fervently shook his head. “No, no. You cannot see my kitchen. Just chill here.”

Kaneki nodded, staying on the couch while Hide disappeared into the kitchen. Once Kaneki was alone, he felt his heart rate pick up when the situation finally set in.

_‘I’m in Hide’s home. I’m alone with Hide in his home.’_

Kaneki repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fists, trying to decide what to do next. He apologized and Hide accepted. He asked Hide to keep working with him and Hide…didn’t say no. He still had to ask for help getting into Glamour but he couldn’t do that now. So, for now, he would just sit and eat ice cream and see what happened next.

As he waited, he took note of all the litter in the living room. Seeing how much Hide worked on his craft only cemented Kaneki’s choice in working with him. He picked up one of the wrinkled pieces of scrap paper, looking at the suit sketched on it.

“Alright, I don’t have any—ahh!” Kaneki shot up when he heard Hide’s scream. The other man just rushed over to him, put the bowls of ice cream down, then tore the paper from Kaneki’s hands. “Don’t look at that!”

Kaneki just stared at him in alarm. “I’m…sorry?”

Hide looked remorseful then resigned. “No, I’m sorry. It’s just…” He glanced at the paper before crumbling it up. “…it’s not very good.”

Once again, Kaneki didn’t understand the problem. He wasn’t a designer so it wasn’t like his opinion on the outfit mattered unless…

Kaneki raised an eyebrow, asking his next question carefully. “Was that for me?” Hide didn’t say anything, just balled the paper up more. Kaneki tried to hide how happy he was when he asked, “You want to make me another suit?”

“I did say your suit was drab,” Hide mumbled.

Kaneki smiled at the memory before he looked down at the other pieces of paper strewn about.

“Are all of these for me?”

“Not…all of them.”

“Do you have a design you like?” Hide seemed shocked by the question. “I want to see what you’ve made.”

Hide was hesitant but he dropped the balled-up paper and left the room. Kaneki stayed where he was until Hide came back with a sketchbook in hand.

He handed it to Kaneki. “So, it’s not perfect but this is what I was thinking for an update.” The two sat down on the couch and Hide squirmed as Kaneki silently examined the design. He gently ran a finger over it, delighted knowing Hide had put so much time and effort into something for him. “Well?”

Kaneki gave the book back. “How much?”

“What?”

“Once you’ve made the suit, how much? I won’t take it for free.”

Hide opened and closed his mouth several times. “You…you want me to make it?”

“I’d be honored.”

“Are you sure?” Hide asked, looking down at the sketch. “It’s…not exactly what you’re known for.”

True, Centipede had wanted an outfit that was as dark as night so he could easily sneak up on his prey before he ripped into them. So, if they realized he was there, all they would see was the terrifying snarl of the vicious vigilante.

But Hide didn’t think about Centipede like that, did he? He didn’t see a vigilante hunting for justice. He just saw…another hero who wanted to help people.

“I…” He smiled at Hide, nodding to himself. “…I think I’d like to be known for something else.” Kaneki wanted to be the hero Hide thought he was.

Hide grinned back before sticking his tongue out. “You’re not paying for it.”

“I thought you wanted to make a profit,” Kaneki said. He still had to pay for that dress Hinami took.

“You know what I want?” Hide put the sketchbook down and grabbed the forgotten ice cream on the table. “To eat this ice cream and relax.” It looked like that was the end of the discussion because Hide took a spoonful of strawberry ice cream and shoved it in his mouth.

 _‘I’ll pay you back later,’_ Kaneki thought, grabbing his own bowl.

The two sat in a comfortable silence while they ate. Kaneki would occasionally sneak glances at Hide, watching as he hummed to himself each time he took a spoonful.

 _‘Cute_.’

Kaneki remembered when they had lunch at Big Girl’s and Hide told him he looked cute when he ate. His cheeks went red. He didn’t understand how Hide could just say things like that without any hesitation.

“Something wrong?”

Kaneki must have been staring too long because Hide was looking at him now, concerned.

“Oh…um…” Kaneki took another bite of ice cream to spare him some time as he thought on what to say. Well, there was something he had been wondering. “…why did you become a designer?”

Hide tapped his spoon on his lips as he thought. “Well, I always wanted to be in the hero business. My dad was a hero and I always thought he was cool.”

“He’s retired?”

“No, he died when I was a kid. Fight with a supervillain.”

Kaneki winced. “I-I’m sorry. I—”

Hide held up a hand, shaking his head. “You didn’t know.” Hide took another scoop of ice cream. “So, yeah, I liked the idea of helping heroes out. I actually started out as a part-timer for the CHC in college.”

_'So, that's how he met his friends there.'_

Hide continued, “I planned on staying there, work in their recruitment division. Make it so new heroes who came in felt a bit more comfortable.”

Kaneki thought on when he first became a hero, how much he dreaded going to the CHC. The agent he worked with was nice but Kaneki could never relax around him. His fear of failure had him a nervous wreck. If Hide had been his agent instead, maybe things would have been a bit different.

“I think you would have done amazing,” Kaneki told him.

“Flatterer.” Hide sighed, looking nostalgic as he stared off. “But fate had a different plan for me. On the day I was going to apply, _she_ walked in.”

Kaneki squirmed in his seat when he heard the fondness in Hide’s voice.

“She?” he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

“Aquatica!” Hide shouted in excitement. “We met at the office’s vending machine and I bought her some snacks. I noticed a scratch on her side and asked what happened. A bullet grazed her during a bank robbery but she said it was minor. Now, do you know what her outfit looked like about five years ago?”

The only one he knew of was the light blue suit she wore now. “Not her current one?”

“No. The one she used to wear was basically a bikini. Now, I have a bad habit of just blurting my thoughts out.”

“No…” Kaneki said, feigning surprise.

Hide smirked, knowing it was a joke. “I know, right? So, I basically asked her why she wasn’t wearing a suit that covered more. Surprised she didn’t drown me for it. She told me that the outfit was chosen by a designer who said it would make her more popular with people.”

That sounded familiar. Touka had told him how her first designer tried to get her to do the same. She took her business elsewhere…after she kicked him in the groin.

“I thought that was bullshit and asked what good being popular was if she died. Then I got mad at the fact that the designer cared more about her looking cute than her being alive.” Hide snapped his fingers. “And that was when it clicked. I asked her if I could design a suit for her and if she liked it, would she try wearing it?” Hide scooped up the last bit of his ice cream, grinning proudly. “And I’m sure you know how the rest went.”

“That’s amazing.” Even when Kaneki decided to be a hero, he still hesitated before applying. The fact that Hide had an idea and just reached for it was admirable. “What about your regular store?”

“That was Aquatica too! After I made her superhero suit, we stayed friends.”

Kaneki just hmm-ed, not sure why that irritated him.

“She had to attend an award ceremony and asked if I could make her a dress for it. I hadn’t even thought of making regular clothes but when I saw how happy she was with it, I knew I wanted to make more.”

Kaneki was able to bury his annoyance when he saw how ecstatic Hide was as he told his story. And when he thought about it, Kaneki couldn’t be angry; if not for Aquatica, he probably wouldn’t have met Hide.

“That’s nice. I’m glad you found something you enjoy.”

“Thanks~!” Hide seemed cautious before saying, “I know you don’t like sharing but…”

Kaneki sighed through his nose, knowing this was coming.

“You don’t have to if you don’t want,” Hide insisted.

Kaneki smiled at that. “I know.” Swirling around his forgotten ice cream, Kaneki wondered where he should start. “Well, _I_ didn’t always want to be a hero. It just kind of happened. You remember Rize?” Hide nodded. “She tried to eat me.”

Hide’s eyes went wide. “Um…I’m guessing that’s not a euphemism.”

Kaneki looked at Hide like he had grown a second head. “What would that be a euphemism for?”

“I don’t know your personal life, Neki.”

“I…I…” Kaneki shook his head, deciding to continue his story. “So, before she had a chance to kill me, Bloodwing showed up.”

Kaneki remembered just how relieved he had been when he first saw Bloodwing swoop down and save him. He also remembered how embarrassing it was when he cried on the rooftop as Bloodwing stood over him.

“So, that’s how you met Touka.”

“Yeah, and I hated that my mistake caused trouble for her.”

“Hey.” Kaneki blinked when Hide used his spoon to poke his nose. “None of that. Do you blame the people who you save or do you blame the people who do the bad things?” Kaneki was going to say it depends but Hide interrupted him. “That’s right. The people who do the bad things. Now, continue.”

“Well, I still felt bad and I figured that if I became a hero, I’d be able to help people and not need anyone to come save me. When I started out, I managed to get a job at Anteiku and everyone there was constantly giving me advice and training.”

Kaneki loved looking back on those early days. Coming into Anteiku and being bombarded by the joyful atmosphere. How even after a busy day of serving customers, everyone was able to go on patrol with smiles on their faces.

“It was nice,” he whispered.

**_‘But you were weak.’_ **

He cracked his knuckles, remembering how Touka had told him not to go off alone. But she was sick that day and he…he wanted to prove that he could be helpful.

**_‘But you weren’t.’_ **

He was weak. If he hadn’t been so weak, it wouldn’t have mattered that he was alone. But he was and because of that, he got taken. And because of that…he…

_Crash!_

Kaneki shot up, his kagune erupting from his back, as he tried to find whatever made that sound. When he didn’t hear anything else, he looked down at Hide to make sure he was okay. Hide just stared back at him, his gaze filled with sympathy. Kaneki then glanced down at the floor and saw broken shards surrounded by pink. The sound had been him dropping Hide's bowl. Kaneki backed away from the mess he had made.

“…I’m…I’m sorry. I-I didn’t…” He was making problems. He needed to leave before…

“You’re not hurt, right?” Kaneki stayed quiet, refusing to look at Hide. “Did you get cut?” Slowly, Kaneki shook his head. “That’s all that matters. Do you wanna sit back down?”

Kaneki gnawed at his lower lip. “I…I’m sorry,” he repeated.

**_‘Always causing problems.’_ **

“You’re not hurt. That’s all I care about.” He heard Hide get off the couch and walk towards him; Kaneki still couldn’t look at him. “Do you want to sit?” Hide didn’t sound mad but still… “Do you want some quiet?”

“No,” he said quickly. Quiet meant that all he would hear was himself. “Please talk.”

“I can do that. Let’s see…oh! I’ve been thinking about getting a rabbit. People keep asking me where the rabbit in Rabbits and Ribbons is and I’m tired of saying I don’t have one. Also, I deserve a rabbit. I’ve been looking at some adoption places online. Did you know some rabbits can weigh like 15 pounds? I’m going to need a lot of lettuce.”

As Hide continued to ramble on about his rabbit, Kaneki felt it was becoming easier to breathe. _‘In through the nose, out through the mouth,'_ he kept reminding himself. He felt his kagune retract as he allowed himself to relax.

Kaneki finally looked at Hide who was trying to keep talking about something. He really wasn’t mad, was he? No, because Hide told Kaneki when he was mad and he told him why. Hide was nice. Hide cared.

“Thank you.”

Hide was startled out of his rambling but he smiled. “Of course.” He gestured to the couch. “You want to sit back down?”

Kaneki glanced down at the bowl. He still made a mess. “I want to clean up.”

Hide waved him off. “I’ve got it.”

“Please,” Kaneki pressed.

Hide looked like he wanted to argue but he decided not to. “Alright. I’ll grab some paper towels.” They spent the next few minutes picking up the pieces of glass and cleaning up the spilt ice cream. Hide also took the time to clean up some of the sketches and fabric that were on the ground. “And done. It’s actually cleaner now.”

Kaneki nodded, not sure what to do next. He definitely didn’t want to share anymore and he wasn’t going to ask Hide for a favor when the other man just helped him calm down.

Hide clapped his hands together, having come to some kind of decision. “With that, I think we should call it a day.”

That was probably for the best. “Thank you for having me. I’ll…talk to you later?” Kaneki asked hopefully.

“What? No way. You’re spending the night.”

“Wait. What?”

Hide looked outside; the sun had set while they were talking. “It’s too late for you to head out. Stay the night.”

“I don’t want to be a bother.”

“You’re not,” Hide assured him. “I’d feel better knowing you were here.” Kaneki flinched at the implication, that he wouldn’t be able to take care of himself if he left. Hide placed a hand on his shoulder, steadying him. “I mean, I’m worried that you’ll go on patrol to take your mind off things. I don’t want you to get hurt if you’re not 100%.”

Not able to argue, Kaneki stared down at his feet. “I won’t go on patrol,” he promised.

“That’s not…” Hide sighed. “…You know how you said I make you happy?” Kaneki felt his face burn. He wished he could forget. “Well…you make me happy too.”

Kaneki’s head shot up and Hide, cheeks bright pink, quickly looked away to avoid his gaze.

“I do?” Kaneki asked, not believing what he just heard.

“Yeah. I like spending time with you and…” Hide’s hand left Kaneki’s shoulder so he could scratch the back of his neck. “…and I’d like to spend more with you.”

Kaneki didn’t know what to do; he just stood there, gaping like a fish. His heart felt like it was going to burst out of his chest.

_‘Say something! Anything!’_

“I…I…” He took in a deep breath, trying to have some kind of cool. “I’d…like that too,” he finally managed to say.

The smile Hide gave him was dazzling and knowing it was because of him had Kaneki smiling, as well.

“Awesome,” Hide said, giggling to himself. “Then…yeah…you should spend the night.” Hide leaned over to the side, trying to get a look at Kaneki’s back. “I can also give you a spare shirt tomorrow.”

Kaneki tried to look over his shoulder at the giant holes he had made. “I’d appreciate that.” The good feelings must have loosened his tongue because he added, “I appreciate a lot you do.”

Hide’s blush had almost left but it quickly came back with a vengeance. Hide mumbled something about getting a spare futon before he stumbled out of the living room. Kaneki couldn’t help how happy he was as he followed closely behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear when I thought of this story, there was a lot more of Kaneki actually doing things that would make him seem like an over-the-top violent vigilante. Then I kinda just...didn't. Better planning is noted for future stories.


	7. Chapter 7

“Ahh!”

Kaneki was forced awake when something heavy dropped on top of him. He shot up and was surprised to see Hide lying on his lap.

Kaneki’s cheeks went red. “Uhh…”

Hide raised his face off the floor. “I forgot you were there,” he groaned.

“Are you okay?” Kaneki asked, not sure how he could help.

“I’m good. Just…” Hide pushed himself off of the ground and carefully stepped over Kaneki. “Alright. Gotta pee.”

Hide ran to the bathroom and Kaneki decided that it was probably time for him to get up too. But then he looked down at his bare torso. Hide said he would find him another shirt but Kaneki had been so tired that he suggested they wait until the morning.

Now, morning was here and he was pretty sure Hide wouldn’t appreciate him walking around without a shirt on. Or maybe he wouldn’t care.

No, he couldn’t be so rude. After all, how would Kaneki feel if Hide walked around _his_ apartment shirtless?

The blood ran to Kaneki’s face so fast, he got lightheaded. He covered his head with the blanket, letting out a pitiful whine.

“I’m back!” Kaneki kept the blanket over his head, refusing to let Hide see his embarrassment. “I’m sorry I woke you. You can go back to bed.”

“No, no. I should get up. Um…can you find me a shirt?”

“Oh, yeah! Forgot about that. Let’s see.” He heard Hide shuffling around, probably searching his closet. “So, don’t know if you’ve noticed but my wardrobe’s a bit brighter than yours.”

Kaneki assured him, “That’s fine. I’ll take anything.”

“Okay then…oh, this one should work. Here you go!”

Kaneki held his hand out from under the blanket. When he felt Hide hand the shirt over, he quickly changed under the blanket before showing himself. He looked down at the shirt; it was navy blue with a white cat peeking out of the pocket on the front. It was a bit tighter than he normally wore his shirts but thankfully, it wasn’t uncomfortable.

Hide nodded, looking pleased. “It looks good on you.”

“Thank you. I’ll make sure to wash it before giving it back.”

“Eh, keep it.” Kaneki wanted to argue but Hide waved him off. “Let’s talk about more important things like breakfast.”

“Oh…um…I…I can make us some coffee if you want,” Kaneki offered, blushing when he realized how that sounded. _‘Like I live here.’_

Hide’s own cheeks turned pink. “That’d be awesome but I don’t have any.” He pointed out the window. “Since Anteiku’s so close by, I usually just go to them for breakfast. Thanks to Touka, they give me a pretty good discount.”

“Ah, that makes sense.”

Kaneki weighed on his options. He should get to work but he didn’t want to drink the swill that the office coffee maker made.

“Come with me.” Kaneki looked shocked by the request. “Something tells me you could use some of their coffee too.”

“Yeah but…” He rubbed his arm, thinking on the last time he had actually gone _inside_ Anteiku. “…I don’t really…talk to anyone there anymore…besides Touka and Hinami.”

“Well, maybe going in with a friend will make it a bit easier.”

Kaneki hesitantly locked eyes with Hide. “…We’re still friends?” he wondered.

“Of course we are. I don’t let strangers sleep in my room,” Hide joked, gesturing around the room.

“I mean…you’re not mad at me anymore?” Kaneki kicked himself. Why couldn’t he just let things be without asking unnecessary questions?

The gears in Hide’s head seemed to turn as he stared at Kaneki. “Wait…did you think I wouldn’t be your friend anymore because of the Tsukiyama thing?” Kaneki nodded and Hide knelt down, patting Kaneki on the shoulder. “Kaneki, even if you weren’t my client, you’d still be my friend, okay?”

Kaneki couldn’t hide his smile. “Okay. I’d still like to be both then,” Kaneki insisted.

“I’d like that too. So, as your friend, I’m telling you that we’re gonna go get some coffee and breakfast sandwiches from Anteiku. Sound good?”

“…Yeah.”

“Awesome. Then go get your wig while I put on pants.”

Kaneki nodded, standing up and leaving the room. As he walked into the living room, Kaneki thought on how strange this was. Being woken up by someone falling on top of him. Being forced to go to Anteiku after so long. Walking into a messy living room where his wig was carefully placed onto a wig head.

Kaneki put on his wig, thinking, _‘It’d be nice to have this more often.’_

“Alright!” Hide skipped into the living room, dressed in an orange tracksuit, and linked his arm with Kaneki’s. “Let’s get breakfast!”

Kaneki chuckled to himself as Hide dragged him through the door.

While they walked down the sidewalk, Hide asked, “So, have you tried their new coffee milkshake?”

“Uh, no. I usually stick to black coffee.” Kaneki laughed at the sickened face Hide made. “I’m not too fond of sweets.”

“But…black? No sugar? No milk? Not even a bit of whipped cream?” Hide sounded horrified.

“Some of us like to actually taste the coffee.”

“Who actually likes to taste coffee?” Kaneki gestured to himself and Hide shook his head. “You like weird things.”

Kaneki just stared at Hide, chuckling, “I sure do, Hide.” He tried to cover the rising blush with his hand and realized Hide still had his arm linked with his. “Um…”

“Oh, sorry. I was making sure you didn’t run away,” Hide told him about to slip his arm out but Kaneki kept a tight grip on it.

“I…I appreciate that,” Kaneki mumbled. Hide seemed happy by the statement because he stepped closer. Kaneki coughed into his other hand. “I appreciate you taking me.”

Hide nodded. “I don’t know what happened but I know that Anteiku makes me happy so if it makes you happy, I want you to have that again.”

Kaneki sighed through his nose. It didn’t seem fair. “How do you…” Kaneki took a moment, not sure how to ask his question. “…always know what to do?”

Hide looked shocked by the inquiry. “Oh…uh…” He used his free hand to scratch the back of his head. “I don’t know. I just…live in the moment, I guess.”

Live in the moment? “Easier than it sounds.”

“Hmm…well, in this moment, we’re going for a yummy milkshake and a gross coffee.” Hide poked him on the nose. “Let’s start with that.”

Kaneki smiled. “Yeah, we’ll start with that.”

The rest of the walk to Anteiku was filled with a comfortable silence. When they reached the front door, Hide went to open it but stopped and looked at Kaneki. Kaneki took in a deep breath before nodding. The two went inside and when the scent of coffee hit him, Kaneki couldn’t help but relax.

“God damn it, Nagachika!”

They both flinched at the sudden curse. The man at the counter lifted up his glasses so he could massage the area around his eyes.

“Hi, Nishiki~!” Hide shouted happily as they walked up to the counter.

Nishiki hissed at him, reptilian pupils thinning further. “You useless piece of shit. You couldn’t not be you for one fucking moment?”

“I don’t know what that means but I’m taking it as a compliment.”

Nishiki flipped him off before turning his attention to Kaneki. “You spineless shit stain. I can’t fucking believe he actually got you in here.”

“…I missed you too, Nishiki.” He really did.

“Feh.” Nishiki turned his back to the two, waving them off. “Go sit, assholes.”

“But we haven’t—”

Nishiki cut Kaneki off. “Nagachika wants a sugary-ass milkshake and you don’t drink anything but black coffee because you have some fucking taste.”

“You’re both weird,” Hide said, sticking his tongue out in disgust. He dragged Kaneki over to a table. “Two breakfast sandwiches too, please!”

As they sat down, Kaneki looked over at the few people in the room. None of them seemed to mind Nishiki’s outburst, meaning they had probably been customers long enough to expect it. It was amazing how much the people who loved Anteiku would deal with.

“Thanks, Nagachika,” Touka said, bringing their drinks to them. As she placed them down, she nodded at Hide. “Helped me win a bet.”

“Do I get to know what the bet was?” Hide asked, grabbing his milkshake.

“I bet Nishiki three months of dish duty that you could get Kaneki back in here.” She smirked at Kaneki. “Welcome back.”

Wait, what? “Is that why you took me to Hide?” Was that why she told him not to mess this up?

“Well, that’s one reason. The other reason you’ll have to figure out on your own,” she told him, walking off with a wave. “Nishiki will give you your sandwiches soon.”

“Thanks, Touka!”

Kaneki just stared at Touka’s back, still not believing what he had just heard. Was this really what had been going on while he agonized over the idea of coming back in here? A bet over his worries and concerns?

“They wanted you back.” Kaneki glanced at Hide who gestured to Nishiki with his thumb. “Makes you feel a bit better?”

Kaneki sighed through his nose. “I guess but…”

“Remember that living in the moment thing?” Kaneki nodded. “Well, in this moment, I’m happy that Touka introduced us. You?”

He couldn’t argue with that. “…So am I,” Kaneki admitted. He’d make sure to tell Touka that later. He raised his cup of coffee. “Cheers?”

“Cheers!” Hide shouted, knocking his cup against Kaneki’s.

Two plates were slammed down on their table. “Stop fucking shouting, Nagachika,” Nishiki ordered, his snake tongue slithering out. “Here’s your food. Finish eating then get the fuck out.”

“I’ll be paying,” Kaneki told him.

“Did I ask you for any money, dumbass? No? Then shut the fuck up and eat.”

Nishiki stomped off and Kaneki chuckled as he grabbed his sandwich. Some things never change.

Hide dug into his sandwich first, letting out a delighted hum. “So good~!”

Kaneki mimicked the reaction when he took a bite. He had definitely missed this.

“So, what are your plans for the rest of the day?” Hide asked.

Kaneki swallowed. “I’ll be heading to work to finish a project. You?”

Hide grinned shyly. “Well, I’ve got an important person coming by later so fingers crossed she likes my stuff.”

“I’m sure she will.” He didn’t know about this mysterious client but Kaneki couldn’t wait to try on his new suit for… “Oh, right. I know I don’t have a right to ask for a favor since you’ve done so much for me…” Far too much for him to repay. Maybe one day.

Hide wagged his finger at him. “None of that. What do you need?”

“Do you know that nightclub Glamour?”

“The big fancy place? Yeah, what about it?”

“Do you think any of your CHC friends could get me in there?”

Hide tapped his chin, thinking. “Hmm…Akira just got a promotion so she might be able to get in there but…” Hide leaned in and whispered, “…she’s not exactly fond of vigilantes.”

That wasn’t surprising. “Just tell her that I have some information on that new synthetic in the city and I’m trying to get rid of it.”

Hide winked at him. “No worries. I’ll put in a good word.”

“Thank you. There has to be something I can do to repay you,” Kaneki insisted. He was tired of owing all of these favors.

“Stay safe. That’s enough for me.”

Kaneki knew he would say that. He’d just have to figure it out on his own.

The sudden cry of “Big brother!” distracted him. Soon, Hinami was running over to them and tackling Kaneki in a big hug. “How are you?”

“I’m good, Hinami. Heading to class?”

“Yeah, we’re going on a school trip today. It’s going to be fun.” She then ran over to Hide and gave him a hug. “Hi, Hide!”

Hide returned the hug. “Hey, Hinami. I saw your debut on TV. You looked great.

“Really?” She glanced at Kaneki then back at Hide, obviously nervous from the last time they had seen each other. “Um…it was okay, right?”

“It was amazing,” Hide told her, patting her on the head. “Tsukiyama did a good job with your cos…tume.”

There was a sudden chill and from the way Hide and Hinami were staring in horror behind him, he had an idea why.

“What?” Kaneki said a silent prayer before turning around and seeing Touka, glaring daggers at them. “What do you mean Shittyama made her costume, Nagachika?”

Kaneki felt himself sink into his seat when Hide asked him in abject confusion, “You didn’t tell her?”

Kaneki sank further.

Hide looked at Hinami. “ _You_ didn’t tell her?”

Hinami kept her head down, refusing to meet Touka’s stare.

Hide glanced at Touka before nodding to himself, having come to some kind of conclusion. “Kaneki, remember when you said you wanted to pay me back?”

Kaneki shot up straight, pleading, “Don’t do this to me.”

“Hinami, let me see you out while your big brother and sister talk,” Hide said, grabbing his milkshake and gently shooing Hinami out the door. “I’ll call Akira!” he cried out before leaving.

“Traitor,” Kaneki grumbled under his breath.

Touka took the empty seat across from him, eyes boring into his soul. “Talk,” she ordered.

 _‘Might as well bite this bullet, too.’_ Kaneki downed the rest of his coffee, steeling himself, before he looked at Touka. “So, when you asked me to help Hinami, I had just gotten a call from Tsukiyama so—”

Touka cut him off. “So you thought I wanted you to take Hinami to that freak? Why would I want that, you dumbass?”

Kaneki held his hands up. “I was dealing with a lot and I wasn’t thinking and…” Kaneki put his head down on the table. “…I’m sorry.”

“And you had Hinami lie to me to cover your own ass?” she growled. Kaneki kept his head on the table. “Definitely didn’t miss this bullshit.”

He heard Nishiki pipe in, “I did. Always fun to watch you two idiots.”

“Go wash the dishes, Nishiki!” Touka shouted, slamming her hands on the table. “Are you done?”

Kaneki lifted his head and nodded. “Yeah, that was all.”

“I meant with your food.”

“Oh.” Kaneki grabbed what was left of his breakfast sandwich. “I’ll take the rest.”

She rolled her eyes, grabbing the dirty dishes. “Next time you come, don’t tell me you did some stupid shit.”

Kaneki blinked as she walked off with the dishes. He smiled once he realized that she was basically telling him it was okay to come back.

“No promise,” he chuckled.

Touka dropped the dishes in Nishiki’s hands, glaring at Kaneki. “Get to work before you get fired.”

Kaneki gave her a small salute before he headed out. He munched on his sandwich while he walked. He had planned on saving it until lunch but he might just go back for another one.

Pulling out his cellphone, he texted Hide:

_To Hide_

_You’ll be happy to know that I told Touka after you abandoned me_

It only took a minute before he got a response back.

_From Hide_

_:P cnsequenes of ur actions_

Kaneki just stared at the message.

_To Hide_

_I’m paying back my debt by teaching you how to spell._

_From Hide_

_Rude! >:C_

_Ill txt u aftr I talk wit Akira_

_To Hide_

_Thank you. I’ll bring you a cavity-inducing milkshake._

_From Hide_

_:D_

Kaneki shook his head, pocketing his cellphone and finishing the rest of his sandwich. As he walked into the office, he passed by Rize and Arima talking with each other.

He greeted them, “Good morning.” Both Rize and Arima did a doubletake and he stopped, looking around in confusion. “What?”

“Are you happy?” Rize asked, her tone a mix of perplexed and disgusted.

Kaneki snickered at her reaction. “Yes, I am.”

“Horrible.” She turned to Arima. “Make him stop it.”

“I don’t know what you want me to do,” Arima told her before turning to Kaneki. “As long as you don’t let it get in the way of your work.”

Kaneki wasn’t sure if he meant his editing or vigilante work but it didn’t matter. “I won’t,” he insisted, taking a seat.

He checked his phone after feeling it vibrate in his pocket.

_From Hide_

_Shes n a meetin but she prmise 2 com 2 R &R 2day_

_U can meet her thn_

Kaneki’s smile grew as he texted Hide that he’d be there. He gave his face a light smack to get him focused again.

_‘No distractions.’_

That what he thought but while he worked, his mind kept drifting as he wondered when he and Hide could go to Anteiku next.

…

…

…

“How does Nagachika drink this shit?”

Kaneki shrugged his shoulders while he watched Nishiki work. “How long have you known Hide?” Kaneki wondered, remembering that Nishiki apparently had known Hide longer than Touka.

Nishiki aggressively shook the container of whipped cream. “Too fucking long. We went to school together. He was just as annoying then as he was now.”

“But he’s good enough to keep going to?”

Nishiki slammed the milkshake on the counter, glaring at him. “You want this _on_ you?”

Knowing the other man would make good on that threat, Kaneki grabbed the milkshake and ran towards the door. “See you next time.” Nishiki responded by flipping him off.

While he walked to Rabbits and Ribbons, Kaneki looked down at the milkshake with a grimace. Hide was a wonderful person but calling this coffee was a crime.

“He likes things far too sweet.”

Kaneki stopped walking when he realized that those weren’t his thoughts. He looked over and saw a blonde woman standing beside him. She gazed at him with stern purple eyes.

It kind of reminded him of Arima’s stare.

Kaneki shook his head to clear his thoughts. “Um…I’m sorry?”

“That’s for Hide, right? He should cut down on the sugar,” she explained.

Kaneki’s mouth opened and shut several times. How did she…? _‘A telepath?’_ He covered his head as if that would protect his thoughts.

“I’m not a telepath, if that’s what you’re thinking.” He gave her a skeptical look and she held out her hand. “My name is Akira Mado. Hide told me I’d be meeting you.”

“Oh.” Kaneki shook her hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Kaneki.” He was still confused when he took his hand back. “But how did you know that?”

Akira gestured for them to continue walking. “My ability is a sort of super scan.” She pointed to her eyes and Kaneki watched as they went from purple to a light green. “With this, I’m able to analyze things to the most minute detail.” Her eyes returned to normal. “He told me I was meeting the vigilante Centipede so I simply had to look for the person who matched him perfectly.”

It seemed she was done explaining but Kaneki still wasn’t sure what to say. To be able to find out someone’s identity so easily would make her a huge threat.

He asked, “Aren’t you worried someone will use that against you?”

_‘Like me?’_

Akira stopped walking so Kaneki did too. “I don’t share my abilities with many people. I’m telling you because Hide told me that I could trust you.” Kaneki couldn’t find it in him to be happy as she finally turned to glare at him. “Don’t make him a liar,” she warned, resuming her walk.

Kaneki swallowed the lump in his throat before he followed her. He couldn’t understand how Hide managed to have so many people in his circle who were so unapproachable…himself, included.

Worried he’d say something that might ruin his chances, Kaneki decided to wait until they reached Rabbits and Ribbons to finish the conversation. Once they walked inside the store, Kaneki felt the mood brighten considerably. He knew it was partly because of Hide rushing up to them.

“Hey, you found each other!” He and Akira gave each other a high-five, a small but friendly smile appearing on her face. Hide then wrapped an arm around Kaneki’s shoulders, glancing at the milkshake. “Is that for me?”

Kaneki handed it over with a snarky “All 8000 calories.”

“Yummy~!” Hide took the milkshake and took a quick sip before he gestured to the back. “I’m with someone right now so I need you guys to take your talk upstairs.”

“Is it about the CHC’s fashion show?” Akira asked.

_‘Fashion show?’_

Hide nodded, bouncing in place. “It’s my first time applying and I think I’m really wowing her.” He took another sip. “Now, go talk. Don’t clean anything.”

Akira walked past him to the backroom. “If you didn’t leave everything a mess, I wouldn’t have to.”

Once she was out of earshot, Kaneki looked at Hide. “I’m pretty sure she hates me.”

“Are you kidding? She introduced herself without me needing to. That’s like her giving you a gold star.”

“You really can’t act as a middleman during this?” Kaneki hoped it didn’t sound like he was begging but he really didn’t want to do this alone.

“I’ve gotta do my own networking but you’ll be fine.” Hide nudged Kaneki towards the backroom. “Don’t worry. She knows that if she says no, I’ll never stop bringing it up.”

Kaneki took a bit of comfort in hearing how Hide would still help him even if Akira said no. “Thanks.”

When they walked into the backroom, Akira wasn’t there. However, there was a woman with bright red hair who was looking at some designs on mannequins.

Kaneki leaned over, whispering, “Good luck.”

Hide winked at him before shooing him up the stairs. As Kaneki climbed the stairs, he thought on all of the questions she might ask him and how he could answer them without issue.

**_‘What do you want from me?’_ **

_‘I’m trying to get into Glamour to find a drug supplier called Zen.’_

**_‘How did you find out about this Zen?’_ **

_‘I heard about him from a drug dealer while I was on patrol.’_

**_‘Why did they tell you?’_ **

_‘I—’_

**_‘Did you bludgeon him? Break his bones? Torture him until he finally told you screaming?’_ **

Kaneki stopped, eyes darting side-to-side as he thought on that. _‘No, no. That didn’t happen. I broke his leg but that was it.’_

**_‘Always count on a vigilante to resort to violence.’_ **

Kaneki reached the top of the stairs, certain this was going to be a disaster. But he wasn’t going to let Hide’s help go to waste. He entered the living room where Akira was sitting on the couch.

She didn’t even glance at him. “You kept me waiting.”

“I’m sorry,” Kaneki said, bowing to her before sitting on the opposite end of the couch.

She turned to him, eyes turning green. “Before I even think about helping you, you need to answer my questions. Understood?”

Kaneki nodded. “I hope you understand that, like you, there are things I don’t wish to share if I don’t have to.”

Akira let out a small hmm. “Let’s see where that gets you. Now, first question…” Kaneki clutched his pant legs, mentally preparing for whatever she threw at him. “…what’s your relationship with Hide?”

His eyes went wide. “Huh?” was all that came out.

She repeated her question, “What’s your relationship with Hide?”

“I…I…” Kaneki shook his head, not sure what she was trying to get out of this. “…what does that matter?”

Akira’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t really care why a vigilante wants my help. I only came because Hide asked me to. If you want me to help you, I need to know who you are to Hide,” she explained.

Of all the turns this could have taken, Kaneki definitely didn’t expect this one. Her green eyes bore into him as she silently demanded an answer. “I don’t know what you want me to say.”

“The truth,” was her curt reply.

“He made my suit.”

“And?”

“And…what?” There wasn’t anything else she needed to know.

Akira just stared at him before she sighed, her eyes turning back to normal. “If that’s all, then we’re done here.” She stood up, straightening out her skirt. “I won’t be helping you.” Kaneki opened his mouth, hoping to reason with her. “I also want you to find a different designer.”

Kaneki blinked, not sure he heard her right. “What?”

“Hide’s associated with the CHC and we want to assure the protection of all our contractors.” She started walking towards the door. “A vigilante with no ties to us is a threat to his safety.”

“Wait!” Kaneki shot to his feet, blocking her path. She looked at him like he was an insolent child. “If you don’t want to help me, that’s fine but you can’t just tell me to leave Hide alone.”

She crossed her arms, not threatened in the slightest. “You had a designer before Hide, right? Just go back to them. Or find a new one at the upcoming show.”

Kaneki couldn’t believe what she just said. “Find a new one?”

Now? When he could go into Anteiku without worry? Walk into work smiling? Was looking forward to whatever Hide was going to make for him? After everything he finally had because of Hide, she was telling him to just let it go?

“Never.”

Akira inspected her nails. “He’s just a designer.”

Kaneki felt his blood boil from how dully she said that. “Hide’s more than that. He’s important to me. He’s kind and works hard and cares about the people he works for. Don’t just say that about…”

Kaneki’s tirade slowed to a stop when he saw the subtle smirk on her face.

It clicked. “Oh…that’s what you wanted…” he muttered, looking down at his feet in embarrassment.

Nodding, Akira glided past the stunned man. “If you were just any vigilante, Hide wouldn’t have bothered to ask _me_ for help. You had to be someone important.” He heard her stop before leaving. “You don’t have anything appropriate to wear to Glamour, do you?”

Kaneki didn’t bother answering, certain she knew the answer to that.

“Hide won’t let you go there without something nice. Once it’s finished, tell him to call me and we’ll work from there.”

He knew he should say thank you but his brain was still trying to comprehend what just happened.

“Thank you.” That brought Kaneki out of his stupor. He turned around, hoping his confusion was evident. Akira simply nodded to him. “I’m glad Hide’s working with you.”

Kaneki turned his head, trying to hide his blush. “I’m the one grateful to be working with him,” he whispered.

He heard the door close and glanced over his shoulder to make sure she was gone. When he saw he was alone, Kaneki fell to his knees exhausted. He stayed there for a few minutes, trying to get his mind back on track. Once he felt he was okay, he made his way back downstairs.

Before he reached the bottom, he could hear Hide talking with someone. Kaneki stayed near the middle of the staircase, quietly eavesdropping.

He heard a woman’s voice say, “Your portfolio is very impressive, Scarecrow. Now, do you have any models lined up?” It must have been the redhead from before.

“The lovely Bloodwing will be helping me,” Hide replied, sounding fairly smug.

“Oh, Bloodwing is always a treat. And male models?”

“I didn’t have any designs set so I wasn’t planning on it.”

“Scarecrow, I highly recommend changing that. Many male heroes still care a great deal about their image so you’ll want to show you can appeal to them as well.”

“I guess so. I’ll ask around.”

They started talking a bit more and Kaneki messed with a black strand on his wig. He never paid attention to the CHC’s fashion show but he knew enough. Tsukiyama had tried to get him to attend last year. Despite the event being associated with the CHC, vigilantes were permitted to join in. Something about it being a safe neutral ground so vigilantes could find appropriate attire; the CHC didn’t want them around but they definitely didn’t want them dead.

_‘It’s not much but…’_

Kaneki quietly made his way back up the stairs, taking off the shirt he borrowed from Hide. He grabbed his ripped shirt from the night before, quickly buttoning it up, as he looked around for anything he could use as a makeshift mask. He found a large shiny piece of black fabric and after using it to cover his mouth, he took off his wig and shook his white hair free.

_‘…hopefully this helps a little.’_

Kaneki walked back down. It looked like Hide was about to see the woman out. Kaneki cleared his throat and both of the designers turned. Hide’s jaw dropped while the woman let out a terrified squeak.

Kaneki scratched at his chin while he spoke, making sure his voice had all the intimidation of Centipede. “Got into a fight and I came in for a new shirt. Couldn’t help but hear your problem.”

“Problem?” Hide repeated, completely baffled.

“Something about needing a male hero.”

That seemed to help settle the woman’s nerves. “Oh! We were discussing the CHC’s annual fashion show for hero designs. Scarecrow was looking for a male model. Vigilantes are completely eligible.”

“I…I…I…” Hide just looked from the woman to Kaneki then back. “I don’t know if he…”

“Sure.” Hide looked at him like he had lost his mind and Kaneki shrugged. “Scarecrow does good work. I don’t mind helping out.”

“Wonderful. I’ll put you down on the list.” She wrote a quick note before bowing to him and then to Hide. “It was lovely meeting you, Scarecrow. We will get in touch with you later this week for further details.”

“I…I…” Hide bowed his head. “Thank you for your time. Let me see you out.”

The woman expressed her gratitude as she was led out to the front. Kaneki let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding. That didn’t go horribly.

Hide ran back into the backroom, pulling at his hair.

“What the hell, man?”

Kaneki felt himself shrink. Any bravado from pretending to be Centipede disappeared. “I just…wanted to help you,” he mumbled.

“I could have found someone. You didn’t have to go through that trouble,” Hide told him, letting go of his hair.

“It wasn’t trouble,” Kaneki insisted. Had he made things worse?

Hide walked up to him and pulled his face covering off. “You made a mask out of scrap fabric.”

“That wasn’t trouble.”

“You know what I mean.”

“I just…” Kaneki risked looking into Hide’s eyes, feeling his chest tighten. “…I wanted to give you something.”

Hide’s face softened. “Kaneki—”

“I know you say I don’t owe you anything but…” Kaneki clenched and unclenched his hands, not sure how to make Hide understand. “…but that’s just because you don’t get how much you’ve done for me.”

Hide just stared at him in silence before closing his eyes. “It’s not like I’ve helped you out of the goodness of my heart.” Hide scratched the back of his head, staring down at his feet. “…I was trying to impress you.”

What? “Impress me? What for?”

“Because…you saved me.” Kaneki raised an eyebrow, having no idea what Hide was talking about. “I know you don’t remember; it wasn’t a big thing.”

“Could you tell me what I did?” He didn’t care how small it was; if he had helped Hide, he wanted to know.

Hide’s hands dropped to his sides. He didn’t look like he wanted to share this story. “It was a few months ago, during that really rainy week. I was biking back here. I…I came up to a crosswalk and tried to brake…but the road was...it was slippery and I couldn’t stop.”

Kaneki watched how Hide’s hands began to tremble and he reached forward. When Hide didn’t try to stop him, Kaneki gently grabbed his hand. It still trembled in his grasp but Hide curled his hand around Kaneki’s and held on.

“My tires slid and-and I almost crashed into an oncoming car but then…something grabbed me and I was safe.”

Hide stared into Kaneki’s eyes; the look was so earnest and Kaneki hated that he couldn’t remember why he deserved it.

“Imagine my surprise when I saw that it was the terrifying Centipede, gently cradling me in his kagune.” Hide chuckled, gripping Kaneki’s hand a bit tighter. “You placed me on the ground and ordered me to walk before you took off.”

Kaneki winced, not recalling that interaction but knowing he would say something like that. “ _That_ made you want to impress me?”

“I had heard rumors about you but you weren’t scary. You just wanted to make sure I got home safe and I was able to. Thanks to you.”

Kaneki hated to tell Hide the truth. “I’m…I’m sorry. I don’t remember that.”

Hide didn’t seem upset about the admission. “I know and it’s fine. I just wanted you to know that you don’t have to pay me back because I’m paying you back.” He let go of Kaneki’s hand so he could walk over to one of his mannequins. “That’s why I’m glad Touka brought you here. I was finally able to give you something.”

“So…the cloak…?”

“I made it a while ago. I had no idea how to get it to you but if I ever had a chance, I wanted you to have it,” Hide confessed.

This was inconceivable. Before he had truly met Hide, the other man had been determined to repay a debt Kaneki didn’t even know about.

“Is that why…you wanted my phone number?”

Hide was stunned by the question, shaking his hands in denial. “No, no, that’s not it. I…” Hide groaned, hiding his face in his hands. “It’s so embarrassing.”

“I won’t judge,” Kaneki told him, walking forward.

Hide peered at him through his fingers. “So…I _had_ planned on just giving you the cloak and leaving it at that but…” Despite trying to hide himself, Kaneki was able to see Hide’s growing blush. “…but I wanted to know more about you.”

That encouraged Kaneki to walk closer. “Like what?”

Hide closed his fingers, refusing to look at Kaneki. “I don’t know…everything? I…I wanted to learn what you were like ‘off the clock'.”

“And what did you learn?” Kaneki wondered.

“That you’re really stubborn…but nice. And you like creepy books and look cu—happy when eating hamburger steak. And…” Hide mumbled his last words.

“Do you want to know what I learned about you?” Hesitantly, Hide nodded. “I learned that _you’re_ stubborn. When you’re angry, you look like a hamster.”

“I-I do not,” Hide stuttered from behind his hands.

“And I’m glad Touka brought me here too.” Finally lowering his hands, Hide looked at Kaneki as if Kaneki would bite. “Maybe I don’t owe you as much as I thought but I still want to help you, if you’ll let me.”

Hide shuffled side to side. “Only if you’re okay with it…”

“I am.”

Letting out a reluctant sigh, Hide held out his hand. “Then I look forward to working with you, Centipede.”

Kaneki shook his hand. “Same here, Scarecrow.”

“Now, let’s get you back into something presentable.”

Kaneki nodded and the two went back upstairs. After Kaneki gathered his wig and shirt, Hide asked how the meeting with Akira had gone.

Not wanting to go too in-depth to their conversation, Kaneki replied, “She wants you to make me something to wear.”

Hide laughed, hopping off of the final step. “I told you she liked you.”

“She tolerates me. She likes _you_.”

“Eh, tomato, potato. Come by later and we can talk suits.” Hide opened the door to the front of the shop and winked. “Of both varieties.”

“Thank you, Hide. I ow—”

Hide shook his finger. “Uh-uh. No more of that. We had our emotional talk and now…” Hide trailed off, his eyes going blank.

“Hide?” Kaneki snapped his fingers and got no response. He looked around quickly before leaning in. “ _I_ like you too.” Kaneki kissed Hide on the cheek before backing away, his cheeks burning.

After a few seconds, Hide blinked. “Huh?” He shook his head. “What was I saying?”

“Suits,” Kaneki replied, blush almost gone.

“Ah, yeah, just come by later and we’ll get you fitted.”

Kaneki nodded, walking towards the main entrance. “Thank you. I’ll bring another milkshake.”

Hide grinned from the counter. “That’s what I like to hear. See you, Neki.”

“See you.”

As Kaneki walked to his apartment, he couldn’t stop his fingers from brushing against the smile that grew on his lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me @ me: Fashion show? When was that decided?  
> Me @ me: About halfway through this chapter so shut up.


End file.
